A Virginia police department released body camera and other video footage of a violent attack involving an officer, who was assaulted inside his cruiser at a gas station earlier this month by a suspect who was shot and killed by responding officers.
Although the name of the Fairfax County police officer assaulted in the May 11 incident hasn't been released, the heroic officers who came to the rescue of their colleague were identified as Christopher Grubb and Officer Kenyatta Momon, WUSA-TV reports. They responded to the confrontation between their fellow officer and a man—identified as Brandon Lemange, 38—who was spotted with a stolen U-Haul truck at an Alexandria gas station.
When the officer approached Lemange about the U-Haul truck, the suspect began attacking the officer and tried to take his service weapon in the altercation. In the struggle, the officer was able to radio dispatch about the assault.
"Get off my gun! Get off my gun!" the officer is heard yelling in one video.
As the attack continues, video footage shows Lemange put the cruiser in reverse out of the parking lot, down a street and into a nearby McDonald's parking lot. The unit slammed into another vehicle as the two kept fighting.
When he reached the scene, Grubb began firing at Lemagne. Momon, thinking the assaulted officer had been shot, rushed toward the cruiser and pulled the suspect away. That's when the attacked officer was able to unholster his weapon and fatally shoot Lemagne.
"In my opinion his intent was to kill that police officer," said Chief Kevin Davis.
"He was literally assaulted, abducted and taken hostage in his own police car," he added. "This is egregious. This is not the norm."
Davis said the officer's double retention holster kept Lemagne from getting the weapon.
"I firmly believe that if (Lemagne) was able to wrench that gun free from the officer, he would have killed him," said Davis.
