Five hurt as truck being chased by police driven through department store
Five people were injured when a truck being chased by police crashed through the doors of a department store in Texas and continued through the busy shop.
The truck crashed into JCPenney in Killeen at about 5.30pm local time on Saturday and continued into the building, striking people as it went.
Emergency medical services transported four victims to hospital while a fifth attended hospital separately. They range in age from six to 75 and their conditions were not immediately known.
The driver was shot dead by law enforcement officers.
Ofelia Miramontez of the Killeen Police Department said the chase began at about 5pm on Interstate 14 in Belton, about 20 miles from Killeen, after authorities received calls about an erratic driver in a black pick-up.
The driver then pulled off the road and drove into the car park of the shop.
“The suspect drove through the doors and continued to drive through the JCPenney store, striking multiple people,” Mr Washko said. “The trooper and the Killeen police officer continued on foot after this vehicle, which was driving through the store, actively running people over. He travelled several hundred yards.”
Officers from the state public safety department, Killeen and three other law enforcement agencies “engaged in gunfire to eliminate this threat”, he added.
One of the officers who traded gunfire with the suspect was working as a security guard at the shop and others were off duty, he said.
Witnesses interviewed by local news outlets outside the shop said they heard multiple gunshots and saw people fleeing.