Two more people have been arrested after a police officer was struck and seriously injured by a stolen police car in Downpatrick, County Down, on Sunday. Police said a 36-year-old man and a 27-year-old woman were detained as enquiries into the early-morning incident continued.
The case has moved quickly because a man also appeared in court over the same events. Kieran Turley, 27, from Vianstown Road in Downpatrick, was brought before Downpatrick Magistrates Court and refused bail, with the judge setting his next appearance for 25 June. Police said the investigation remains live and that a man and a woman are still in custody.
The officer was hurt after a vehicle failed to stop for police in the Fountain Street area at about 04:45 BST on Sunday and was later found in the Ballymote Walk area. A man ran from the car and officers chased him on foot towards Colmcille Road, while the vehicle was driven dangerously along Flying Horse Road and Ardglass Road. Assistant Chief Constable Melanie Jones said “someone was in the driver's seat - driving erratically and directly towards an officer,” and after the officer fired one round from his weapon, he was hit by the stolen police car and needed help from colleagues and ambulance staff.
Turley was charged with dangerous driving, driving while disqualified and using a motor vehicle with no insurance. He was initially arrested on suspicion of attempted murder as well, but was later released unconditionally on that count, leaving the court to deal with the driving charges instead. Police later said a bottle had been thrown at officers from the car, and that the accused was found hiding in a garden at a nearby address with the key to the vehicle.
The arrests now widen an inquiry that began with a failed police stop and ended with a seriously injured officer on the ground. What still needs to be pinned down is the full sequence between the first attempt to stop the car, the foot chase and the moment the officer was struck.
