BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – A Boynton Beach police officer who was struck by a car while chasing after a shoplifting suspect remained hospitalized Thursday morning while the suspect who fled from him was in jail.
Boynton Beach police spokeswoman Stephanie Slater said the officer was pursuing Ryan Moody when he was struck by a car Wednesday afternoon on Gateway Boulevard.
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According to a probable cause affidavit, Moody took off running from a Kohl's department store when officers tried to arrest him, running through the parking lot toward Gateway Boulevard.
The officer chased Moody, who was standing in the median, and tried to apprehend him when he was struck by a car traveling east on Gateway Boulevard.
According to the affidavit, Moody saw the accident but kept running toward a nearby apartment complex. He was eventually apprehended in a shopping plaza on the corner of Gateway Boulevard and Congress Avenue.
When questioned by detectives, Moody confessed to stealing the items from Kohl's but said it was his accomplice's idea. He said Elyshia Wilson wanted to steal children's clothing to give to her child.
Wilson, 23, was able to get away during the commotion and remains at large.
Boynton Beach Police Chief Michael Gregory said the next two days will be critical for the officer, who hasn't been identified.
Moody, 24, of Lantana, faces charges of grand theft and resisting an officer without violence. He was being held at the main Palm Beach County jail on a $3,000 bond.