Five crimes involving guns in Hagerstown injure several
At least five separate Hagerstown incidents Sunday and Monday involved firearms, leaving an auxiliary police officer shaken, another man shot in the arm, another shot in the leg, another carjacked and a house struck by a bullet.
An arrest has been made in at least one of the incidents, according to Hagerstown Police Lt. Rebecca Fetchu. The shooter in another incident was chased by police but managed to slip away. The robbers involved in the carjacking also remain on the loose.
Most of the incidents appeared to be isolated and there is not a crime spree happening, Fetchu said. However, she couldn't say what might have been behind the spate of incidents.
"Wish I had an answer to that," she wrote in an email Tuesday afternoon.
Auxiliary police officer held at gunpoint
Jolyan Michael Walker, 27, is facing several firearms-related charges, as well as first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment in the first incident that involved the auxiliary police officer.
Fetchu said Walker's address was Greencastle, Pa., but online court records show him with an address in Hagerstown.
About 4 a.m. Sunday, police received a call of shots fired near Church Street and North Potomac Street.
As officers were responding, the Washington County Emergency Dispatch Center said the auxiliary officer, who was unarmed, was being held at gunpoint in the first block of North Potomac Street, near Public Square and south of Church Street, Fetchu said.
The auxiliary officer normally patrols downtown in the early morning, pulling on doors to ensure they're locked and looking for signs of break-ins, she said. He was not injured and his identity was not released.
An officer responding to the call saw a male, who was later identified as Walker, head toward the bushes on the north east corner of the square and allegedly drop a handgun. Officers arrested Walker and recovered a .45-caliber handgun from the bushes, Fetchu said.
The auxiliary officer told police that he had found Walker walking down the middle of the street, Fetchu said. When the auxiliary officer asked Walker to get out of the street, Walker said he'd been shot.
About the time the auxiliary officer realized Walker had a gun, Walker allegedly grabbed the officer by the shirt and pulled him along while stating, "I want a cop, I want a cop."
Moments later the Hagerstown officer arrived, and Walker allegedly let go of the auxiliary officer and dropped the gun in the bushes.
Walker was treated for a minor injury to his hand, but wasn't found to be shot, Fetchu said.
Walker was being held without bond Tuesday afternoon in the Washington County Detention Center.
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Man shot through the leg on Fairground Avenue
A man was taken to Meritus Medical Center late Sunday after he was shot through the left leg in the 100 block of Fairground Avenue.
Details were sparse Tuesday afternoon, but Fetchu said the victim knew the shooter in the incident reported just after 11 p.m.
Police pursued the shooter toward the wooded area between North Prospect Street and North Burhans Boulevard.
A canine unit and Maryland State Police helicopter were called to help with the search, which encompassed the area along the railroad tracks between Pennsylvania Avenue and Forest Drive, but the search was unsuccessful, Fetchu said.
She didn't have a description of the shooter Tuesday afternoon.
Anyone with information about the incident may contact Hagerstown police at 240-313-4345 or crimetip@hagerstownpd.org.
Carjacking after man struck in the head with a gun
Early Monday, a man reported he had been hit in the head with a handgun, then had the rental car he was driving stolen at East Washington Street and South Cannon Avenue.
At 12:40 a.m., the man told police that he and two other people he had been "spending time with that day" went to an area convenience store in the rental car, a silver 2022 Chevy Malibu with Virginia plates.
As the victim parked, the person in the back seat hit him with the gun, Fetchu said. The victim then got out and ran, and the other two people drove off in the rental.
Moments after police arrived at the convenience store, they heard gunshots from the 100 block of East Antietam Street.
Officers found the front door of the victim's house had been kicked in, and they found two spent .40-caliber shell casings behind the residence. No one was hit, Fetchu said.
More information isn't being released at this time due to the active investigation, she said. Anyone with information is asked to contact Officer T. Cramer at tcramer@hagerstownpd.org.
Victim shot in forearm in an alley near Summit Avenue
Monday morning, a 26-year-old man told police he was shot after being confronted in an alley near Summit Avenue.
Police met the man at Meritus Medical Center east of Hagerstown around 6 a.m., Fetchu said. He had been shot in the left forearm.
The man said he was in an alley east of the 200 block of Summit Avenue when he was confronted by two males in a vehicle.
He said that after he was shot, he ran to the 800 block of Maryland Avenue where he contacted a relative for help.
Anyone with information should contact Detective J. Dietz at jdietz@hagerstownpd.org.
Window broken by bullet on South Locust Street
Also Monday, a resident in the 300 block of South Locust Street said that his home had been struck by a single bullet.
Police found there had been a "disturbance" among a group of young males, possibly juveniles, when someone fired a single shot that struck the window of the home, Fetchu said.
Anyone with information should contact Hagerstown police at 240-313-4345 or crimetip@hagerstownpd.org.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: 5 gun-related crimes Sunday and Monday cause injuries, lead to arrest
