Associated Press
PHOENIX — The armed robbery of $18,000 from two employees of a strip club led to the shooting of a police officer and a civilian in an east Phoenix street, authorities said Thursday.
Two men were arrested after Tuesday afternoon’s shooting, which came after a police chase ended with a crash.
Phoenix police planned to provide an update on their investigation at a news conference Thursday afternoon.
The officer and the civilian, who is a volunteer posse member for the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, remain hospitalized in critical condition.
Their names haven’t been released, but police said the 34-year-old officer is a seven-year veteran and the citizen is 63.
Roger Allen Sharp Jr., 26, of Phoenix, was being held on suspicion of attempted murder, burglary, unlawful flight, resisting arrest, and illegal possession of a weapon. Court records show he was previously convicted of two counts of criminal possession of a forgery device and his right to have a gun has not been restored.
David Lee Murray, 36, of Tempe, was booked into jail on suspicion of armed robbery.
Bail for each man was set at $500,000, and they were awaiting court-appointed lawyers.
Authorities allege that Sharp and Murray robbed two employees of Pink Rhino Cabaret at gunpoint as they left a restaurant around 2 p.m. Tuesday.
The employees told police they were planning to take the $18,000 deposit to a bank when the men robbed them at gunpoint and fled in a vehicle.
An officer responding to the robbery call spotted the vehicle and tried to stop it. The suspects’ vehicle crashed into a truck that was stopped at an intersection.
Police said Murray ran away while the officer tried to arrest Sharp at gunpoint with help from the sheriff’s posse volunteer, who was driving the truck.
Sharp got the officer’s gun and shot the officer and posse member before fleeing with the weapon, according to court documents.
Both men were arrested nearby in the backyards of different homes.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press