Suspect held after hit-and-run injures officer

San Francisco police say they have taken a suspect into custody after an officer on a bicycle was struck by a hit-and-run driver Wednesday afternoon.

The collision occurred shortly after 12:20 p.m. when officers from the department’s Tenderloin station were investigating a possible firearm violation on Turk Street between Van Ness Avenue and Franklin Street, police Sgt. Mike Andraychak said.

The officers spotted a suspect in a vehicle who they believed had a firearm. However the suspect also spotted the officers and drove away, striking an officer on bicycle patrol as he sped away.

Police later located the suspect’s vehicle where it had been abandoned near Buena Vista Park and conducted a search of that area.

The suspect was ultimately taken into custody in the 500 block of Ellis Street around 3:30 p.m. His identity has not been released.

The officer, a four-year veteran with the department, was seriously injured in the collision and taken to San Francisco General Hospital in critical condition. He is currently out of surgery and in the intensive care unit.

“This is a tough day for the police department,” Assistant Police Chief Toney Chaplin said. “Everyone right now is having a tough time with this, so I ask the public to keep the officer in their prayers,” Chaplin said.