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Pinellas Park officer recovering after being shot
Aaron Mesmer reports
PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - One Pinellas Park officer is recovering Wednesday after a confrontation with a suspect turned violent late last night at a Circle K gas station.
The scene remained active during the overnight hours, but officials said the suspect – identified as 24-year-old Calvin Brockington – is now in custody. Law enforcement said he led them on a wild chase before he was finally taken into custody.
Just before 10 p.m. Tuesday, Pinellas Park officers were called out to the gas station on Ulmerton Road after a woman called to report she had locked herself inside the gas station bathroom because saying her boyfriend, Brockington, was threatening her.
The first to arrive on the scene was Officer Jacob Derr. Investigators said as soon as he attempted to make contact with Brockington, the suspect shot him in his right arm, shattering his bone. That’s when a second Pinellas Park officer arrived on scene, Officer KC Gavin.
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Law enforcement said Brockington also shot at her when she tried to confront him. She fired back, but neither were hit. Then, Brockington attempts to make a run for it, carjacking an individual in the parking lot at gunpoint and taking off down Ulmerton Road with Pinellas County deputies following closely behind.
"There were some deputy sheriffs that were out there on Ulmerton that saw him," explained Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri." At that point, he turned around…and he got up on Interstate 275. At that point, our helicopter was up. We had a crane. I definitely was in the area. Other law enforcement officers were in the area, followed him on until he actually hit the interstate. He got down into the area in St. Petersburg. Deputies rammed his car, disabled him, and were able to take him into custody."
Brockington is no stranger to law enforcement. He has a long rap sheet of previous convictions here in Pinellas County, including kidnapping of someone under 13 and grand theft of a motor vehicle. Those charges as recent as last June.
Now, he is facing numerous charges including two counts of attempted murder of a police officer.
Officer Derr was taken to the hospital and underwent surgery and officials said he is expected to make a full recovery.