Officer who shot fleeing suspect made right call, chief says

Calgary's chief of police says he's confident the officer who opened fire on a fleeing suspect Tuesday afternoon made the best decision in a volatile situation.

Rick Hanson said the driver who sped away from the Crowfoot Shopping Centre in northwest Calgary needed to be stopped.

Police were responding to reports of a suspicious vehicleoutside the Bank of Montreal at about 3:40 p.m. MT.

When an officer approached the vehicle, it sped off, mounted a sidewalk and hit two elderly pedestrians, seriously injuring a woman.

At that point an officer fired his weapon twice, hitting the driver.

That man remains in hospital, police said. Two other suspects were also taken into custody.

The female pedestrian remains in hospital with serious injuries.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) is investigating the shooting, as it does in all such cases.

Investigators are asking anyone who witnessed the incident to contact ASIRT.