3 sought in Woodstock shoplifting incident that injured officer

Police on Thursday released photos of three shoplifting suspects accused of hitting an officer with their SUV in their rush to get away from a Woodstock outlet mall.

The officer was knocked down when he tried to confront the suspects’ Chevrolet Equinox in the parking lot of the Outlet Shoppes at Atlanta on Tuesday evening, Woodstock police said. While he was not seriously injured, his weapon accidentally fired, according to police.

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Officers were called to the outlet mall shortly before 6 p.m. to investigate a theft in progress. They saw the Chevy speeding through the parking lot when they arrived, police said in a lookout.

It became stuck in traffic, and one officer approached the vehicle with his weapon drawn. A witness told investigators the driver “turned the car into the officer, knocking him to the ground” before driving away, according to the lookout.

“If he (the officer) had not rolled over, she would have run over him,” the witness said of the driver.

His gun went off when the handle struck the Chevy’s window, according to police. No one was reported injured by the gunfire.

“The accidental discharge of the officer’s duty weapon is currently under administrative investigation by the department,” the agency said in the lookout.

Assisting officers pursued the vehicle onto I-575 before eventually calling off the chase on I-75 South in Marietta because of weather and safety concerns, according to police.

Investigators are now looking for two women and one man suspected in the incident. They were driving a new silver Equinox with Alabama tag 3BH4629 and damage to the driver’s side window, police said.