Phoenix bank robbery suspect shot by officer arrested after release from hospital
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A 37-year-old man who was shot by an officer after attempting an armed robbery at a bank near Seventh Street and Thunderbird Road in Phoenix was arrested Saturday, police say.
The man, later identified as Charles Rock, was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries after he was shot by a Phoenix police officer on Thursday afternoon at a strip mall located on West Cactus Road following a helicopter chase, police said.
Rock was released from the hospital on Saturday morning and booked into a Maricopa County jail on several charges related to the attempted robbery, according to Sgt. Brian Bower, a spokesperson for the Phoenix Police Department.
The chase ensued just before 3:20 p.m. April 20 when authorities responded to calls of a man inside a bank near Seventh Street and Thunderbird Road with a rifle and an explosive device. Police did not specify at which bank the attempted robbery occurred.
Rock fled the bank in a car before officers arrived but was followed by a witness in a truck and located by a police helicopter as he headed south on Interstate 17, according to police. The 37-year-old then got off the interstate and drove to a strip mall parking lot on West Cactus Road where he proceeded to fire several shots at the police helicopter, police said.
A responding Phoenix police sergeant in an unmarked vehicle saw the man firing a gun at the helicopter, prompting him to shoot at Rock from inside his car, ultimately striking him, according to police.
Rock got back in the car after being shot and drove south on 28th Drive toward a parking lot, where additional officers successfully took him into custody, police said.
Medical treatment was provided to Rock at the scene until a Phoenix Fire Department crew arrived to take him to a local hospital where he remained until Saturday, police said.
Authorities said a police bomb squad and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives personnel completed a sweep of the suspect's car and located an "improvised explosive device" inside the vehicle.
No officers or community members were injured during the incident, police said.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix bank robbery suspect shot by officer is treated, then arrested
