A police officer was hurt while trying to intervene in a case between a disgruntled employee and an employer in Winter Garden.
- Suspect was former employee of Italian Garden Pizzeria
- Police say the suspect pinned a Winter Garden Police officer to a garbage dumpster with his car as he tried to escape
The incident happened in the parking lot of the West Point Commons plaza on West Colonial Drive Friday.
Police say the employee, who worked for Italian Garden Pizzeria, attacked the owner and then took off. He then called over and over about coming back to pick up his last check.
When he got there, police were waiting to arrest him for battery.
Police say before that could happen, the suspect tried to drive away, hitting a police sergeant and pinning him between the bumper and a dumpster.
Two other officers fired at the driver, who was injured and taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center.
"A person who is willing to hit a police officer to get away, obviously they’re pretty focused," said Lt. Keith Ralston with Winter Garden Police. "So I can’t imagine what would have happened out in this parking lot if the same thing would have happened.”
The injured officer was taken to ORMC for his leg. No customers were hurt.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting to make sure use of force was justified.