CLEVELAND (WJW) – New video released to the I-Team shows police chasing more people for pointing guns at officers from a stolen car.
Police have been getting terrorized like that day after day, so we investigated what happened this time, and what’s being done to stop it.
A series of these cases began last week after a suspect in a stolen car shot and wounded a Cleveland officer.
We found the crime spree outrageous and terrifying to officers, and tough to stop.
The latest case happened Wednesday morning involving Cleveland police, Euclid police and Bratenahl police.
Bratenahl police video shows officers chasing a vehicle down the Shoreway.
You hear on the police radio, “Vehicle got on 90. Believe the vehicle is stolen.”
And, “Cleveland had a vehicle stolen with a passenger with a weapon that pointed at law enforcement.”
Then, Bratenahl officers point out they had just faced the same danger, saying, “Radio I think they pointed a gun at us when they were turning onto the highway.”
And “It appears that they pointed a gun at us out there.”
The Bratenahl officers chased all the way to Lakewood, but they lost the suspects on side streets.
Just last week, Cleveland police officer Mark Bahrijczuk got shot twice chasing stolen car suspects. He is now recovering at home.
Since then, someone in a stolen car taunted Euclid police at their headquarters.
People in a stolen car pointed a gun at officers on the Shoreway and recorded video.
Tuesday, someone in a stolen car drove by a Cleveland police station pointing a gun at an officer. Police later spotted that car near Euclid High, then it sped off.
And, again, on Wednesday, the case developed with Cleveland, Euclid, and Bratenahl officers.
Euclid Police Chief Scott Meyer said, “I’m a law-and-order guy, and this stuff is driving me nuts.”
The Chief told us he has his officers on alert. But, police have no simple way to stop the stolen car suspects targeting cops.
He added, “We’re constantly trying to balance, again, the safety of the officers, the safety of the public, and the apprehension of these folks.”
Some of you reacted, last week after the I-Team reported on one of these cases. A voice could be heard on police radio talking to Cleveland officers about getting involved. So, we’ve asked Cleveland police for an explanation.
On that radio traffic, you hear, “To our zone cars, your presence is just going to aggravate them and encourage them to keep doing what they’re doing.”
We’ve asked for comment from Cleveland police for days, but we have not received a response.
Back to the Bratenahl police chase, a dispatcher reports on the car with the suspects, saying, “90 westbound, it was going approximately 110 miles an hour.”
But, so far, no one’s been arrested for these cases with threats to police.
We did, though, report on Monday, one man has been indicted for harassing Cleveland police and interfering with them handling calls. That happened back in January, and the case is just now moving through the courts.
Meantime, no one has been arrested for the shooting of Officer Bahrijczuk. Police have been following up on leads and tips.