A log truck driver has been recognized for placing himself in harm’s way to prevent suspects from fleeing the scene after shooting a state trooper during a traffic stop in New York.
The incident occurred shortly after 11 a.m. on Friday, June 16, in Duanesburg, New York.
New York State Police (NYSP) Trooper Richard Albert spotted a silver SUV traveling at speeds of over 100 m.p.h. on eastbound I-88 and pulled the SUV over for a traffic stop, according to NYSP.
As Trooper Albert approached the SUV, the driver lowered the driver’s side window, and a passenger reached through that window and shot Albert, striking him in the arm.
Trooper Albert returned fire.
Both the driver and the passenger in the SUV fled on foot.
The driver was later found and taken into police custody without incident.
The passenger, later identified as New York resident Nelson Troche, 32, was found in the woods suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was transported to a hospital and was later declared dead.
Trooper Albert was treated at a hospital and later discharged.
A log truck driver has been recognized for helping to prevent the occupants of the SUV from escaping.
“There was actually one tractor trailer that did assist our trooper,” Richard Allen, NYS Police Deputy Superintendent, said during a news conference. “He actually pulled in front of the car so that car didn’t take off.”