Deputy fires at motorcyclist who pulled gun while fleeing Indiana crash: police

A Porter County Sheriff's deputy fired at a motorcyclist who allegedly pointed a gun at the deputy while running away from a crash early Monday in northwest Indiana. | Indiana State Police

A Porter County Sheriff’s deputy shot at a motorcyclist who allegedly pointed a gun at him after a crash early Monday in northwest Indiana.

The deputy was on his way to a call at 1:16 a.m. near U.S. Route 6 and North 200 West in Valparaiso, Indiana, when he clocked a motorcycle going 80 mph, according to a statement from Indiana State Police. He tried to pull the orange Kawasaki over and the bike took off.

The bike headed west on U.S. Route 6 and north on State Road 149 to Lenburg Road in Portage, Indiana, state police said. The driver then lost control on a curve and the motorcycle hit a road sign.

The driver fell off the bike in front of the deputy’s car, got up and started to run north into a wooded area, state police said. As he was running into the woods he pulled out a gun and pointed it toward the deputy.

The deputy pulled out his gun and fired multiple times, state police said. The motorcyclist kept running into the woods.

The deputy, a 41-year-old man who has worked with the sheriff’s office for four years, was not injured in the incident, state police said. Investigators do not believe the motorcyclist was struck by gunfire.

A perimeter was set up to search for the motorcyclist, but he apparently left the area, state police said A semi-automatic gun was found in the woods.

Authorities identified the owner of the motorcycle and subsequently obtained a search warrant for an address in rural Liberty Township, Indiana, according to the Porter County Sheriff’s Office. A person of interest was detained for questioning but no charges had been filed as of Monday morning.

State police were investigating the shooting and the deputy was expected to be interviewed by investigators in the next 72 hours.