COLUMBUS, Ohio — Two 15-year-olds are facing charges related to a disturbance that led to a shooting outside of a bingo hall in southeast Columbus Saturday afternoon.
Two officers on scene were working special duty outside of B33 Bingo in the 3300 block of Refugee Road just before 2 p.m.
Retired Sergeant Brian Kaylor, who works as a liaison for bingo hall and the Columbus Division of Police, said the two teenagers pulled into the parking lot and tried to break into a vehicle that was parked near the front doors of the business.
Kaylor said when the teens pulled into the lot, there was a special duty officer arriving to relieve the other officer inside the bingo hall. The officer witnessed the teens attempting to break into the car and approached them. The teens returned to the vehicle they arrived in.
According to Kaylor, both officers tried to remove the teens from the vehicle.
"The driver was able to get the door shut and in a very aggressive manner, slammed on the gas, driving backwards, turning the wheel and he actually ran over the officer and potentially the other individual in the car who he was with," Kaylor said.
The second officer on the scene pulled out his weapon and fired into the vehicle, hitting the teen driver, police said. In an update Monday, police identified the officer as Officer Glenn Thivener, a 34-year veteran with the police department.
The driver then reportedly continued out of the parking lot onto Refugee Road where he struck another vehicle. Police said that the driver and passenger in the other vehicle were OK.
Both teens were taken into custody and transported to Nationwide Children’s Hospital where their conditions were described as stable.
Kaylor said the officer who was struck suffered a broken arm.
Officers have been working at the bingo hall for the last 30 years and Kaylor said here have been very few incidents of any kind at the location.
“It’s a very safe business. It’s unfortunate that these individuals chose to come to this location and commit this crime," Kaylor said.
Both teens are charged with felonious assault on a police officer, felonious assault, attempted theft of a motor vehicle and receiving stolen property. The driver is facing an additional charge of felonious assault.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is investigating the situation.
Columbus police say there is no body-worn camera footage of the incident because special duty officers are not required to wear them, according to the department's policy.