Wichita, KS - Robbers Steal Police Car After Chase - Police Car Smashes Into Tree

Robbery Suspect Steals Police Car


Two Wichita residents wake up overnight Friday to find a police car nearly hit their house, but it wasn't an officer behind the wheel.

Late Thursday night, two Wichita Police detectives saw a couple of armed suspects trying to rob a customer at a gas station near 29th and Arkansas. As one detective chased a 20-year-old man from the scene, the man doubled back and jumped in the detectives' car and drove away.

The man wrecked the unmarked police car into a tree a few blocks away. Lynn and Barbara Ranney have never been particularly fond of the old elm that sits on the corner of their lot. Depending on which of the pair you ask, it's either "nasty" or "ugly."

Still, they're relieved the tree kept the car from hitting their house. It's why Lynn says he's protected the elm for years.

"When they repaved our street about three years ago, they wanted to take that tree out," says Ranney, "and I said no."

Police arrested two 20-year-old men for aggravated robbery.
The police car suffered substantial damage.

Police say the two detectives acted appropriately during the attempted robbery when they left their car running. When they pulled up to the scene, they saw an armed suspect chasing the gas station customer. The detectives' first responsibility on a rapidly-evolving scene is to protect the victim and then arrest the suspect. A captain with the department says the damage to the police car was unfortunate, but the detectives had their priorities straight.
 

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