DEA agent shoots and kills drug suspect in Chicago

CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) - A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent shot and killed a person who allegedly ran him down with a vehicle during a drug bust Saturday morning in the Austin neighborhood on the West Side.

About 8:45 a.m., agents investigating a “multiple-kilogram cocaine distribution point” saw an exchange of packages and tried to pull over one of the vehicles involved in the handoff, but the suspect drove off, according to a DEA spokeswoman.

Agents activated their lights and sirens and again tried to stop the vehicle on Central Avenue near Interstate 290, where the suspect turned his vehicle and struck one of the agents, authorities said.

The agent then shot the suspect, who died despite medical assistance given at the scene, authorities said. The suspect’s name has not been released.

The agent was taken to a hospital with injuries that weren’t considered life-threatening.

A “significant amount of cocaine” was found in the suspect’s vehicle, authorities said.

The DEA and Chicago police are investigating.