… Bealefeld says motive unclear, but suspect had grudge against police …
baltimoresun.com
By Justin Fenton, The Baltimore Sun
6:53 PM EDT, July 21, 2011
Baltimore police say a 20-year-old man with a grudge against the department fired a rifle at a Southwestern District patrol officer Tuesday night. The officer was spared serious injury when the bullet grazed him and struck his service weapon.
Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III said detectives received a break in the case when a community member phoned in a tip Thursday morning that two possible suspects were in a vehicle in the neighborhood.
Chey Jordan of the 1100 block of Cooks Lane has been charged with attempted murder. Bealefeld declined to give a specific motive for the shooting, saying officers had conflicting accounts from the suspect.
What was clear, Bealefeld said, is that Jordan had “no love lost for the Baltimore Police Department” and had a “large animus” toward city officers. The officer, who was not identified, is a five-year veteran.
“It’s a miracle that our officer was not more seriously injured,” Bealefeld said.
Bealefeld said there was no indication that Jordan or the other man knew the officer who was shot or had any interactions with him. Court records do not indicate that Jordan has any previous arrests.
According to a Facebook page for a man named Chey Jordan from Baltimore, he attended Milford Mill Academy and lists the Army as his employer.
Bealefeld praised the resident who called in the tip to city police.
“I want to emphasize the incredible speed at which we held this dangerous person accountable is a result of fantastic cooperation from neighborhood residents,” the commissioner said. He said police can get “dramatic results” when the community helps police.
The unidentified officer was working in the Southwestern District when he responded about 11:40 p.m. to a domestic violence call in the 1100 block of Cooks Lane, just south of Gwynns Falls Park. Bealefeld said the officer was talking to people involved with the call when he heard what sounded like fireworks and realized he had been struck.
The bullet struck the handle of the officer’s service weapon, and fragments hit his stomach just below his body armor. Bealefeld said the ammunition had the potential to pierce that armor, causing more serious injury.
The officer was treated at Maryland Shock Trauma Center and released.
At some point Thursday morning, police received a tip that a vehicle possibly involved in the shooting was in the area again, police said.
Police said Jordan and another person tried to flee but were caught by officers. Inside the vehicle, police found a telescopic lens for a rifle, Bealefeld said. Detectives then obtained a search warrant for a home in the 1100 block of Cooks Lane and found dismantled pieces of an SKS rifle.
The second man was not charged.
Copyright © 2011, The Baltimore Sun