PHILADELPHIA -
A Philadelphia SWAT officer is in the hospital Wednesday morning after he was shot Tuesday night in Fairmount.
Police say Officer Jose Roman was struck by a fellow officer's gunfire during a traffic stop at a gas station just before 10 p.m. Tuesday at Broad and Parrish streets.
It all apparently started when a woman flagged down the officer, claiming a car cut her off and the driver pointed a gun at her.
Police said they found a Chevy Impala matching the description with three men inside at the BP gas station nearby, and they confronted the occupants.
When Roman's partner saw the guys inside the Impala moving around instead of coming out immediately, as he'd just ordered, then saw one of them point a gun, the officer fired first with a shotgun just once, wounding both a 21-year-old suspect inside the vehicle and his partner.
It's not known yet if Roman was hit directly or by a ricocheting pellet, but it fortunately hit his bulletproof vest.
"There were three males in and around that vehicle," Deputy Police Commissioner Richard Ross said. "In an attempt to gain control of the males, they ordered them to show their hands. At some point in time, one of the males actually produced a handgun, pointed it at the officers, and Officer Roman's partner discharged his shotgun."
"Unfortunately, we believe it was the ricochet that struck Officer Roman in his ballistic vest," Ross said. "Fortunately, we're glad to report that he's OK. The wind was knocked out of him. He's actually in good spirits right now. His wife is with him. But we recovered two handguns. The suspect at this time, we believe, is a 21-year-old male. He's in extremely critical condition."
Ross added, "We're very, very lucky. I mean, considering the circumstances, I mean, again, it's important to highlight the fact that they recovered two weapons. And, I mean, obviously, one of these guys was not afraid to use it."
None of the men in the Impala got a shot off with the weapons, which police described as .9- and .40-caliber handguns.
Roman was able to recover and assist with handcuffing the suspects. He was later listed in stable condition at Hahnemann University Hospital.
The wounded suspect was rushed to Temple University Hospital. The other two suspects were taken into custody.
Police continued to search and gather evidence at the scene for some time after the shooting.
FOX 29 has learned that Officer Roman is 44-years-old and has served with the Philadelphia Police Department for 19 years.
