SALEM OFFICIAL: OFFICER'S GUN FIRED, WOUNDING SUSPECT

Man Wounded In Undercover Drug Operation Salem Officials Did Not Know What
Caused The Two Suspects To Suddenly Flee.

A man was still in surgery for a gunshot wound late Tuesday night after a
Salem police officer's gun discharged during an undercover drug operation,
officials said.

Salem city spokeswoman Melinda Payne described the incident as an
accidental shooting but said it will be investigated by the Virginia State
Police.

The shooting occurred shortly after 8 p.m. Tuesday in the parking lot
between the Pancake House and Lee-Hi Lanes in the 1800 block of Apperson
Drive, Payne said.

Two undercover Salem police officers and one undercover Virginia State
Police officer were working a drug operation together. Payne said two men
were in a car, involved in a drug buy with one of the Salem officers.

Police refused to release the names of the suspects and law enforcement
officers involved in the incident, saying the investigation was far too
preliminary.

"We want to give the state police an opportunity to come in and launch a
full investigation," Payne said.

While the first Salem officer worked the buy, the other two were nearby,
but Payne did not know where. She also did not know what caused the two
suspects to suddenly try to run away.

One suspect tripped and fell, and the first Salem officer caught up to him.
The officer stood over the man, his .40-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun
pointed at him, Payne said.

"The guy bumped the gun with his hand, and it discharged," she said. "I
think he was reaching up, probably in a position that was half down, half up."

She did not say whether the man was trying to grab the officer's gun or if
there was some other reason he hit it.

The suspect was shot in the abdomen. He was taken by ambulance to Carilion
Roanoke Memorial Hospital, where he was in surgery Tuesday night.

Payne said the hospital had told police the man's injuries were not
life-threatening, but she did not know his condition.

The second suspect was caught nearby and was being held for questioning.
Payne said neither man had been charged with a crime Tuesday night.

The Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations has taken over
the investigation. No one from the state police was available for comment
Tuesday.