ST. LOUIS — Police said an off-duty St. Louis officer exchanged gunfire with a teen who tried to carjack him while he was working a second job at a funeral home Monday evening.
The 45-year-old officer was in the parking lot of Kutis Funeral Home on 2906 Gravois Rd. around 8 p.m., the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said.
He was sitting in plain clothes in an unmarked vehicle when a boy, believed to be 15 or 16 years old, walked up to his car and pointed a gun at him, police said. The boy told him to get out of his car. The officer got out, took cover behind his car and retrieved his department-issued gun.
The two exchanged gunfire, and then the boy ran away with two other boys, ages 15 and 16, police said.
The officer, who has 22 years of service, called for backup. Responding officers found two of the boys in the area, but the boy who shot at the officer escaped. The boys were taken into custody and remanded to juvenile courts.
The officer was not injured, police said, though his vehicle and another vehicle were damaged by gunfire. A gun was recovered in the area.
5 On Your Side asked the department whether the boy who was shot at the officer was injured; the department responded that the investigation is ongoing.
This is a developing story. It will be updated as more information becomes available.
