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The shooting of an armed robbery suspect by two Utah law enforcement officers during a high-speed chase in July was justified, the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office said in a report released Wednesday.
Officers Shawn Bias of the West Valley City Police Department and Dustin Olzack of the Unified Police Department "reasonably believed that deadly force was necessary" to defend themselves and others when they shot at Ramon Silvestre Franco, who allegedly admitted that he had fired three or four shots in the air as he fled from the officers.
Franco, 31, was hit twice by gunfire from the officers and his girlfriend, 19-year-old Celene Hernandez, who was in his car with him, was hit once, in her right hip. Neither officer was hit.
Franco has been charged in 3rd District Court with four felony counts: attempted aggravated murder, aggravated kidnapping, theft by receiving stolen property and failure to stop or respond at command of police.
According to a probable cause statement filed in court, police were looking for Franco on July 17 because they suspected he had committed an armed robbery about a week before in West Valley City. West Valley police officers say they located him driving a stolen Toyota Camry with Hernandez inside, and when they tried to pull him over in Glendale, Franco drove off.
A 15- to 20-minute chase ensued through Salt Lake City, West Valley City, Kearns and Taylorsville. During the chase, Franco allegedly fired numerous rounds at officers, and the gunfire intensified after UPD successfully spiked the tires of the suspects' vehicle near 4500 South and Redwood Road in Taylorsville, according to police.
Police returned fire because they believed Franco posed a threat of death or serious injury if his capture was delayed, the report says.
Olzack's weapon was down three rounds and Bias' was down one, the report says, while eight spent shell casings were recovered from the areas where the suspect fired his gun.
Franco — who told investigators he thought he was being pursued by gangsters, not police — had an initial court appearance on Tuesday and is slated to return for a scheduling hearing next week.
The report says Franco is one of two suspects in a July 11 aggravated robbery at the Kmart at 1770 W. 4100 South. Investigators say store employees were trying to stop two men suspected of shoplifting from leaving when one of them fired shots into the ceiling.
Bias said he had responded to that robbery and thought the man he was pursuing might be one of the suspects, who he believed would be armed, according to the district attorney's report.
Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC