By Brian Niemietz
New York Daily News
WATERBURY, Conn. — Connecticut State Police released video of a bloody attack on a trooper that resulted in him being hospitalized and a suspect arrested.
Bodycam footage shot by Trooper Tim Wright shows the lawman attempting to arrest a 31-year-old Tyler Wilmot during a traffic stop that escalates quickly. After calling for backup, Wright gets out of his cruiser to confront Wilmot, who’s already exited his black truck and is warning “Don’t come near me.”
The trooper says “What do you mean ‘don’t come near me’” and grabs the suspect’s arm. A scuffle immediately ensues as a woman in the background urges Wilmot not to engage Wright.
Roughly 10 seconds after the conflict begins, Wright drops to his hands and knees and his body camera shows a considerable amount of blood on the street beneath him. His backup, Trooper John Covello, then appears as Wilmot tries to escape on foot.
“I don’t know if he stabbed me or what he did,” a bleeding Wright tells Covello.
Covello gives chase and brings down the suspect with a taser while Wright gets on his radio. Gurgling, spitting and bleeding, the injured officer requests help.
“Send me an ambulance for me,” Wright tells dispatchers.
Covello’s bodycam shows the suspect claiming he’s the victim as his hands are cuffed behind his back.
“He attacked me!” Wilmot insists repeatedly after being neutralized.
A still image from the footage shows what appears to be a knife in Wilmot’s right hand before he was subdued.
Wright was hospitalized in stable condition at Waterbury Hospital, local media said. He reportedly suffered wounds to his neck and throat.
Wilmot will be in court Wednesday where he faces charges including criminal attempt to commit murder and assault on a public safety officer.
State Police Sgt. Luke Davis said “Officer Wright has been here in town for some time, and it is highly likely the individual was known to him,” according to the Associated Press.
State Attorney’s Office prosecutor Don Therkildsen took matters a step further.
“This was not an accident,” he said, according to WFSB. “This was an attempted assassination.”
According to prosecutors, Wilmot later asked if the trooper was dead and expressed hope the 35-year law enforcement veteran would succumb to his injury.
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