SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — Caught on Camera: a Mid-South man records the moments before and after a shootout between Desoto County deputies and a suspect wanted for a string of robberies.
Charles Finkley said it was surreal.
He was getting gas around 9 p.m. Wednesday when he saw an officer next to a car in the Kroger parking lot.
“He immediately jumped out of his car and was yelling, ‘Get out of the car! Get out of the car! Get on the ground!'” said Finkley.
Moments later, he said he heard more sirens coming down Stateline Road and another police car came flying in.
Deputies were looking for Kevin Washington. They said he committed three robberies in a short time that night.
Desoto County deputies spotted his car in the parking lot of a Kroger after a BOLO went out.
Finkley started recording on his phone.
His video shows a dog behind a car as a man flailing his arms run by and law enforcement follow.
“Everyone started panicking, because we didn’t know if shots were going to be fired or not,” said Finkley.
The video then shows officers getting into their cars and heading to the back of the building.
Finkley said about 45 seconds later he heard what he thinks was 4-5 gunshots.
“My heart dropped,” he said. “it literally dropped, because I didn’t know if the officers were hurt or the suspect got shot.”
Finkley said he eventually got into his car to head home. As he pulled on Stateline, he saw what he feared the most: an ambulance with a police escort.
“Someone had said one of the officers was down back there in the back, and so when I saw two ambulances come in and then once they came out with the lights on, I prayed,” he said.
Authorities said the shootout killed Washington and wounded two deputies.
Sgt. Sean Garrett was shot in the foot and will need a cast. He’s recovering at home.
K9 Deputy Hutchens is in the ICU with a collapsed lung from the shooting. He’s expected to make a full recovery.
Finkley turned his video over to the MBI.