KEY POINTS

  • A soldier in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas is being called a hero after stopping an active shooter with a car
  • The suspect and another active duty service member were injured but are in stable condition
  • Authorities are investigating but don’t have a motive yet

An unnamed active-duty soldier is being called a “hero” for stopping an active shooter with his car near Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, Wednesday (May 27).

Leavenworth Police Chief Pat Kitchens said in a press conference that the soldier, identified only as a 34-year-old man, may have saved “countless lives” after hitting the suspect with his car.

The active-shooter incident occurred at Centennial Bridge, which is near the military base connecting and connects Leavenworth to Platte County, Missouri.

“We learned that this was an active shooter with multiple weapons on the bridge firing at cars,” Kitchen said. Police responded to reports of shots fired near 11 a.m. at the bridge.

Kitchens said the suspect had a semiautomatic rifle and a handgun. He was firing at cars and pedestrians, hitting another soldier on active duty.

The soldier rammed into the suspect with a vehicle. Kitchens said the soldier intervened intentionally with a car to hit and injure the suspect who was still shooting.

“Very likely countless lives were saved by the person that intervened and helped,” Kitchens also said.

First responders found the suspect pinned under the vehicle. The other injured soldier was the only other injury reported.

At least three other cars were hit with bullets. The window of one of the cars was hit with at least seven bullets, according to reports.

Kitchens said that the suspected shooter, a resident of Platte County, does not appear to have a motive or a specific target. “The person was simply, randomly firing at vehicles as they passed by,” he said.

The wounded soldier and the suspect were brought to a nearby hospital. Both were in serious condition Wednesday afternoon but were stable.

The Centennial Bridge was under construction at the time of the shooting. Vehicles were only allowed to travel across the bridge from one direction at a time. The bridge is near the army base.

Police said that they don’t believe the “hero” soldier was targeted. Authorities are investigating the incident and trying to determine whether the guns the suspect used were procured legally.

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