Frightening moment woman escapes handcuffs, steals rifle and shoots officer
A handcuffed woman being held in the back of a police car managed to break free, steal a gun and shoot an officer and a civilian last Saturday.
Video footage taken from within the vehicle, and shared by the Grady County Sheriff's Office in the US state of Oklahoma, shows the woman strategically escaping from her restraints before firing the weapon, leaving two people injured.
Police said the woman, later identified as Rachel Zion Clay, was originally detained for erratic behaviour and was not going to be arrested. She is now facing three charges of shooting with the intent to kill, according to local reports.
The video shows Clay sitting in the back of the vehicle as she begins moving around - presumably attempting to remove the handcuffs from her wrists, although this part can't be seen.
She then manages to locate an AR-15 rifle from behind the metal petition and she fires the gun through the back of the car.
The video cuts to the outside of the vehicle where the officers are standing some distance from the car.
Footage taken from an officer's bodycam shows another man — believed to be the civilian— being hit by a bullet as he clutches his chest in pain.
A deputy was also shot as a bullet grazed his head, although this can't be seen on camera.
Luckily, both sustained non-life-threatening injuries and have been released from the hospital.
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Woman 'was handcuffed properly' police say
Explaining how the dramatic events unfolded Grady County Undersheriff Gary Boggess told Local 12 News that the handcuffs were put on properly.
"While in the back seat of a patrol car, she was able to get her wrist free from the handcuffs," he explained.
"She was able to reach up on our consoles. There's several switches, one is a gun switch to unlock the gun lock and she found it, unlocked the gun lock and was able to retrieve an AR-15 rifle."
After this, the woman was able to figure out "how to put a round in it" and "put it on fire" before firing "approximately 10 rounds at our deputies and a civilian."
Sheriff Boggess said they'll now make a few changes, particularly to the console where the gun was held.
It has the word "gun" written on it so she was "able to see that," he said.
Clay reportedly barricaded herself in the car and eventually surrendered nearly three and a half hours later.
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