A deputy with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and a St. Petersburg Police Department K9 are recovering after being shot by a suspect who ran from a traffic stop early Friday morning.

Detectives said the incident began at 1:50 a.m. when a Pinellas deputy pulled over a car for a traffic stop at 3rd Avenue South and 30th Street South. The driver, Elijah Johnson, 23, of St. Petersburg, stopped, but then took off.

Investigators said Johnson abandoned his car at 2nd Avenue South and 26th Street. At that point, a St. Petersburg police K9 officer and his dog to begin tracking the area. 

“The person who was driving the car, the suspect, shot the K9,” Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said Friday morning.

A short time later, Johnson fired shots at Sgt. David Stang, who was in his unmarked SUV at 3rd Avenue South and 27th Street. The shots were fired through the passenger side of the deputy’s cruiser.

To read the full report on this incident, visit Florida’s News Channel 8 page.