Chula Vista

A police officer shot and wounded an armed theft suspect after officers confronted a group of prowling inside a tow yard, police reported Sunday.

The victim, Coy Donald Thomas, a 25-year-old construction worker, was listed in fair condition Sunday at UC San Diego Medical Center, where a nursing supervisor said he was being treated for gunshot wounds to the abdomen and thigh.

Police said Thomas, whose address was unknown, was one of three men found in and around the grounds of the South Bay Towing yard in the 600 block of K Street.

Lt. Dean Girdner gave this account of the shooting, which occurred shortly after 11:30 p.m. Saturday:

Officers were dispatched to the tow yard by witnesses who reported that two men were “going through vehicles.” David Eugene Higgins, 20, address unknown, was arrested without incident inside the yard.

Thomas, however, jumped a fence and ran, with Officer Martin Brady giving chase on foot. Repeated shouts to stop went unanswered for several blocks, and the two eventually came to the side of a residence in the 700 block of Jefferson Avenue.

The officer confronted him from 15 to 20 feet and ordered him to freeze and stop. Thomas turned and faced the officer in a dark, narrow area on the north side of the garage and put his hands in the front waistband of his pants. Thomas then raised his right hand and appeared to throw a knife at Brady.

Brady fired several rounds at Thomas, who fell to the ground. When officers attempted to check his condition, Thomas struggled to his feet, climbed over another fence and ran another block. He was arrested there, where a knife was found in his hand.

Police said Thomas was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon, possession of an illegal knife and theft. Higgins was booked on suspicion of theft.

Carl R. Smith, 19, was detained by police after he was found sleeping in a vehicle near the scene, but was not charged.

Brady, 27, has been a Chula Vista police officer for four years.