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Cops: Winter Garden police shoot suspect, officer injured

Suspect was disgruntled worker returning to employer for last paycheck, cops say

WINTER GARDEN, Fla. –  "I thought I heard firecrackers," said Lisa Guerard. "A lady runs into our restaurant and says, 'Take cover.'"

Guerard said she was having dinner inside the pizzeria with her daughter when she heard several gunshots.

"I just grabbed her. We ran into the kitchen and we hid underneath where they make the salads. It was a little scary," Guerard said.

Police tell us the incident started with a fight between a former restaurant employee and the boss. The suspect left and kept calling the restaurant back, asking for his last paycheck.

When he came back, police were waiting outside to arrest him.

"I saw cops charging this way with their guns drawn," said Jeff East, who works next door. "Telling the guy, 'Hands up, hands up, hands up.'"

Investigators said the suspect drove his car around the building, hopped a curb and pinned an officer against a dumpster. That's when officers fired at the suspect several times.

"They ended up dragging him out of the vehicle," East said. "He had a white T-shirt on, but it wasn't white anymore, it was red. They laid him on the ground and handcuffed him."

The officer was rushed to the hospital with a broken leg. News 6 has learned he's doing OK.

Detectives have not released the suspect's condition.

FDLE is handling the case.


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