On Thursday October 26, the Tucson Police Department shared radio chatter as well as dash cam footage of a near lethal shootout that took place between officers and a criminal in the South Park area of Tucson just this last Monday.
Officers Robert Orduño and Robert Miranda were out on special enforcement detail, meaning they were focusing on drugs and potential gang activity in their patrol area, when they came across a man on a motorized bicycle driving erratically and dangerously in the neighborhood. The officers observed multiple traffic violations including running through stop signs and driving on the side walk while operating a motorized vehicle.
The two officers attempted to pull the man over but a chase eventually began in which the man crashed his bike and attempted to escape over a fence. Officer Miranda quickly followed on foot while his partner followed in their vehicle. Once the suspect and Miranda were back on the street, shots were fired and a bullet that grazed the head of Miranda and forced him to drop to the floor. The suspect continued to flee while Officer Orduño followed and opened fire.
The suspect, 33 year-old Marcus De La Torre, was shot multiple times and was administered first aid on the site by officers on the scene. Both he and Officer Miranda were dispatched to Banner UMC for treatment where Miranda was later released but De La Torre is still receiving treatment according to the latest reports.
De La Torre does have a prior criminal history. His record includes a prior aggravated assault charge on TPD officers as well as narcotics and other minor offenses. TPD officials did say they found narcotics on De La Torre but could not go into greater detail on what they found since the investigation is still ongoing. The weapon that was used to fire upon the officers was a 9mm Glock according to the police.
The following is footage from the dash cam of the vehicle the officers were driving in as well as some audio clips that were taken from the radio dispatch during the events of that night.