TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) — Police say a 19-year-old man waived a gun at Tempe mall shoppers before pointing it at an officer and being tackled to the ground.
Tempe police said Tuesday that Roger Nelson faces charges of attempted homicide of an officer and armed robbery stemming from a series of incidents at Arizona Mills mall on Monday night. Nelson not yet have a lawyer.
Police spokeswoman Molly Enright says police got a report that a man was going the wrong way on a one-way access road, crashed into a tree, and then got out of his car and pointed a gun at them.
Enright says the man then went into the mall and robbed two pairs of shoes from a store before trying to walk away undetected.
But police had formed a perimeter around the mall and an officer tried to stop Nelson because he matched the suspect's description.
Enright says Nelson then pointed the gun at the uniformed police officer, who then deflected the weapon and wrestled it away during a struggle. Officers used a Taser stun gun and arrested Nelson.
Slabside posted at 9:24 pm on Tue, Aug 30, 2011.
It's too bad he wasn't converted into a bullet sponge.
k33j88 posted at 4:53 am on Wed, Aug 31, 2011.
this is the reason i pack heat.
Slabside posted at 6:06 pm on Wed, Aug 31, 2011.
You and me both k33.