A man is hospitalized after being shot by a Unified Police Department officer Thursday afternoon.(Photo: Chris B)
HOLLADAY, Utah — A Layton man is hospitalized after a shooting involving a Unified Police Department officer in Holladay Thursday afternoon.
According to Sheriff Rosie Rivera, the officer observed what he believed to be a crash at the intersection of 4500 South and 2300 East between a motorcyclist and a truck.
Rivera says, “He ran over to see what was going on. The individual on the motorcycle took off running and there was a short foot pursuit.”
Investigators say the suspect, Eric Pectol, 49, started aggressively fighting with the officers on the scene.
“The individual then bent down, picked up a gun that was on the ground, pointed it at the officers and the officers fired at him,” she says.
Pectol was taken to the hospital in “either serious or critical condition,” according to Rivera. The officers may have been banged up from the fight, but they were not significantly hurt.
Authorities still have a lot of questions about what happened before the shooting. For instance, they don’t know what sparked the fighting, and they can’t conform whose gun Pectol reportedly picked up from the ground.
“That what the [Officer Involved Critical Incident] Protocol Team will find out. We do know from one witness who did say the individual said that he had a gun,” Rivera says.
During the struggle, a Granite School District bus was at the intersection. However, officials report there are no known injuries from any of the students onboard.
Police say even though they’ve spoken with witnesses, they’re still hoping more people will come forward with information.
Rivera says,“Also, if anybody has video with cell phones out all the time, now, we would appreciate any information so we can provide that to the protocol team.”