Leetonia PD: Officer injured; attacked with steel rod

LEETONIA, Ohio (WKBN) – A 62-year-old Leetonia police officer is being treated at Mercy Health, along with a suspect following an encounter overnight.

Leetonia Police Chief Allen Haueter said the officer was responding to a call at a home on Pearl Street a little after midnight when the suspect attacked the officer with what the chief described as a “steel rod.” The suspect then reportedly tried to grab the officer’s firearm, but the officer, John Hancock, was eventually able to subdue him, according to Haueter.

The chief said the officer suffered a broken ankle and cuts and bruises to his face. The suspect was also hospitalized with injuries that the chief says occurred before the officer’s arrival.

The incident remains under investigation.

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