WILLOUGHBY HILLS – Two police officers were injured in a shooting at Classic BMW in Willoughby Hills Thursday afternoon.
According to Police Chief Christopher Collins, officers responded to the dealership on SOM Center Road due to a report of "customer issues." The suspect (who was there to have his car serviced) apparently pulled a gun on employees due to complaints about the bill, and only began firing after police arrived.
MORE: Suspect reportedly drew his weapon over the bill, dealership staff called police, he didn't fire until police showed up. @wkyc.
— Chris Tye (@TVTye) September 28, 2017
During the exchange of gunfire, the two officers as well as the suspect were shot. All were taken to the hospital and are in stable condition, Chief Collins said. At least one of the officers was airlifted to MetroHealth Medical Center. WKYC Channel 3's Tom Meyer was at MetroHealth with more.
The Willoughby-Eastlake School district placed four of its nearby schools on lockdown for about 20 minutes at the request of police. The schools were:
- Willoughby South High School
- Willoughby Middle School
- Willoughby-Eastlake School of Innovation
- Edison Elementary School
The schools are no longer on lockdown, and Superintendent Stephen Thompson released a statement regarding today's events:
I would like to thank our families for their patience during our lockdown and subsequent busing delays. Once we had received a call from local law enforcement asking that we place designated schools in lockdown, our immediate concern became the safety of our students. Notifications went to our families as soon as we were given updated and accurate information by our local police departments. We are grateful to our local law enforcement agencies for all they do to keep our students safe and I would like to ask that you keep the affected officers and their families in your prayers.
The Principal of Willoughby South High, Zach Weagley, released a similar statement:
At approximately 2:18 p.m., South High School received word from the Willoughby Police Department that there was an officer shot at Route 91 and I 90. The police department informed the high school that the area was potentially dangerous. At that time we decided to move to a lock down due to the fact that the whereabouts of the suspect involved were unknown. Out of concern for the safety of our students we felt it was necessary not to dismiss at our normal time. Safety of our students is of the utmost concern and we appreciate your patience while we worked with law enforcement. Once we received notice from the Willoughby Police Department that the area was safe and secure we were able to safely dismiss our students for the day. If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me.
Route 91 is also open after being briefly closed in the area.
Please stay with WKYC for any further updates on this story.