By Mariya Lewter
The Macon Telegraph
LaGRANGE, Ga. — A Troup County deputy was shot multiple times while conducting a welfare check on a man, according to WSB-TV.
Deputy Michael Hockett, who went to a home on Jackson Street in LaGrange to perform the check, was hit in the forehead, elbow and waist by pellets from a shotgun before returning fire at the gunman. The deputy is expected to be OK, said the news station.
“When the deputy arrived, he exited his vehicle to go around a fence toward the house and heard what he described as a banging sound,” Troup County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Stewart Smith told WSB. The suspect then fired shots at Hockett when he went to investigate.
“The deputy then retreated, at which time the individual got into a truck and began driving toward the deputy,” Smith told the station. Smith said the suspect then got out of the car, fired shots at the deputy and the two exchanged gunfire.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the wounded suspect has barricaded himself inside of the LaGrange home. LaGrange police and a SWAT team are on the scene.
According to the AJC, authorities have been called to the suspect’s home multiple times when the man experienced experienced psychological problems.
The suspect has not yet been identified, nor have authorities given the extent of his injuries.