Police have not found the suspect they say drove his car into an off-duty police officer on Tuesday in an upscale shopping area of Chevy Chase. Police said the 30-year-old officer was working security at The Collection at Chevy Chase and was in full uniform when the incident happened. Officers were called to the scene a little after 4:50 p.m. and briefly shut down Wisconsin Avenue in both directions. The officer, who the department didn't name, was parked in his marked cruiser when a security guard from one of the stores told him that another person had expressed concern over a suspicious-looking Acura parked on South Park Avenue. Police said the officer found the silver Acura parked on South Park Avenue just near its intersection with Wisconsin Avenue. The driver was the only person in the car, police said. Police said the officer believed the vehicle was illegally parked and had improperly displayed tags. The officer saw the vehicle drive toward the traffic light and prepare to make a left turn onto southbound Wisconsin Avenue, according to a police press release on Wednesday. Police said the officer then approached the driver's window, put his hand on the roof of the vehicle and made eye contact with the driver. Police said the driver then turned the wheel toward the officer, accelerated and struck the officer. According to the police account, the officer's hand got stuck on the vehicle and he fell on the roadway as the vehicle sped off. He suffered bruises to his arms and legs and a concussion and was released from the hospital on Tuesday night. The vehicle was located unoccupied on Wednesday morning in Northeast D.C. by the Metropolitan Police Department, who had received a call for a suspicious vehicle. Police are calling the incident an assault by vehicle and said the officer involved is an eight-year veteran of the department. Montgomery County police officers commonly work security for the stores on the block, nicknamed the Rodeo Drive of the East Coast. Tenants include Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Jimmy Choo, Dior and Cartier. The store's high-priced merchandise has made the block a frequent target of thieves and burglars. In April 2013, a group of men threatened employees of the Cartier store before robbing it and leading police on a high-speed chase into D.C. At the time, police said the group of masked and gloved men gained entry to the store, tussled with a security guard and "took control" of the store and its four employees without the use of weapons, but through "their presence." Within a minute, they smashed a glass case in the back of the store and stole merchandise. According to scanner traffic after the robbery, the suspects took 12 watches worth about $150,000. The men were later arrested by the FBI and a few pleaded guilty to a string of similar robberies at high-end stores around the region. Since that smash-and-grab, the property owner has talked with tenants and Montgomery County about installing curbside parking meters. A representative of property owner Chevy Chase Land Company told a citizens' group last year that security guards said one reason the stores are a target is because thieves can easily pull up to the curb, steal items and drive off. Anyone with information about the incident on Tuesday is asked to call the Montgomery County Police Department at 240-773-6710. Photo via Chevy Chase Land Company
Suspect Who Police Say Hit Officer With Car Still At Large
