FOUNTAIN A suspected car thief sustained life-threatening injuries Monday after being shot by a sheriff s deputy in a park, which the man swam across a creek to reach in a bid to outrun the law, officials said.
The man, who appeared to have a firearm, was approached by a Fountain police officer, who suspected him of car theft, at the Love s Country Store in Fountain around 3:30 p.m. The suspect fled, swimming across Fountain Creek and eventually reaching Willow Springs Ponds, Lt. James Vidmar of the El Paso County Sheriff s Office said at a Monday night press conference.
It was there that law enforcement began negotiating with the man, who was shot at least once by a sheriff s deputy several hours later. It is not known if the suspect fired a weapon.