ISP investigating overnight Police Action Shooting

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4 years ago

police action shooting

Indiana State Police news release on the investigation into an overnight Police Action Shooting in Kendallville, Indiana.

Indiana State Police Investigate Overnight Police Action Shooting in Kendallville

Kendallville, Indiana (April 22, 2021) – Indiana State Police detectives are conducting an investigation of an overnight police action shooting in Kendallville. The incident began as a police vehicle pursuit in Fort Wayne, running through several counties, where multiple police agencies became involved. The pursuit ended with a traffic stop in Kendallville that resulted in an exchange of gunfire initiated by the driver.

The incident began shortly after 11:30pm last night, when officers from the Fort Wayne Police Department attempted to stop a Buick passenger car for a reckless driving violation near Harris Road and Olympia Avenue on the northwest side of Fort Wayne. The suspect driver initially stopped for the officer, but then sped off from the traffic stop as the officer was walking up to the car, which then initiated a vehicle pursuit.

This police pursuit ran through northern Allen, DeKalb, and Noble Counties for nearly 45 minutes. Multiple law enforcement agencies became involved, to include Fort Wayne Police, Indiana State Police, Noble and DeKalb County Sheriff Departments’, and Kendallville Police. The pursuit terminated at approximately 12:15am, when the suspect vehicle came to a stop on Waits Road east of Main Street at the Johnson mobile home park on the south side of Kendallville.

During the course of the traffic stop, the suspect driver (the sole occupant) refused to exit the vehicle and began shooting at officers from inside his vehicle. Multiple officers returned fire. The suspect continued shooting at officers from inside the vehicle. Officers quickly transitioned to setup a secure perimeter around the traffic stop in order to contain the situation and protect the surrounding residents, as well as themselves. Special Operations (SWAT) officers from both Fort Wayne Police and Indiana State Police were called in to resolve the situation.

At approximately 1:45am, SWAT officers from Fort Wayne Police were able to successfully take the suspect driver into custody. He was identified as JUSTIN ROBERT WEIKEL, 40, of LaOtto, IN. After being taken into custody, Weikel was then immediately tended to by paramedics that were staged nearby. He was transported from the scene via ambulance to a Fort Wayne area hospital. The extent of his injuries was unknown at the time of transport. He was reported as being in stable condition at the time of this release.

No officers nor civilians were injured during this incident.

Weikel was found to have an outstanding felony arrest warrant out of Noble County.

This remains an ongoing criminal investigation. There is no further information to release at this time. Once the investigation has been completed it will be turned over to the Noble County Prosecutor for review and determination of criminal charges to be filed.

If you have information regarding this case, you can call the Greater Fort Wayne Crime Stoppers at (260) 229-7867 or toll-free at 1-800-237-7867. You can also use the P3 app on your Android phone or Apple phone here. They are also available on Facebook. You can submit your tip anonymously.

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