A portion of the 5 Freeway in Burbank was closed on Saturday night after an armed suspect allegedly shot a police canine.
The shooting happened near the Buena Vista Street offramp to northbound lanes of the freeway, Burbank police officers told CBS Los Angeles.
Police said that they had pulled over a car in the 2400 block of Buena Vista Street at around 6:40 p.m. near the freeway onramp. At some point during the traffic stop, the suspect jumped from the passenger side of the car and ran up the onramp before climbing over an embankment wall into a nearby neighborhood, police said.
“Additional police resources responded, and a coordinated search was initiated using a police canine and a police helicopter,” said a news release from BPD. “During the search, the canine located the suspect. The suspect fired multiple rounds, striking the canine, before fleeing on foot.”
The dog’s condition was not immediately known, but police told CBS LA that it was undergoing surgery as of 11 p.m. Sunday night.
It’s unclear if any arrests have been made, but police noted that the driver they initially pulled over did not flee.
SkyCal flew over the spot of the investigation, where a long line of traffic continued to grow due to the investigation. It’s unclear if drivers were being rerouted from the area. An armored vehicle was seen on the side of the road near the embankment where the suspect fled.
Anyone who knows more is asked to contact BPD at (818) 238-3210.
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