YORK COUNTY, Va. — A man is in custody after allegedly shooting at law enforcement for approximately five minutes in York County on Wednesday.
According to the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office, it happened in the 300 block of Mark's Pond Way, close to Newman Road and Interstate 64's Exit 234. James City County police officers responded to investigate a road rage incident that happened earlier in the day.
"We received several calls reporting that a motorist had allegedly been shot by a lone motorist of a light blue sedan," James City County Police Chief Mark Jamison said.
Jamison added that the vehicle was struck by up to four rounds, but the driver was not injured.
When police officers arrived in the neighborhood to investigate, a man, later identified as Andrew Susalis, 35, allegedly opened fire on them from the upper floor of a residence while they were still a few houses away. The suspect fired several rounds from a high-powered rifle, striking a James City County police car.
Authorities said Susalis shot at the police car for several minutes, riddling it with more than 100 bullet holes.
"[One of the officers] was on the inside of that vehicle, near the curb, the entire approximately five minutes of shooting," Jamison said.
He also said that the officer suffered minor bullet fragment injuries and was released from the hospital Wednesday afternoon.
"To pull up on a scene and take multiple rounds from a rifle, inside a car, and you're fighting for your life at that moment, is something we never expect to experience," Jamison said.
Deputies said they did not return fire because they couldn't pinpoint where exactly the gunfire was coming from. Susalis eventually surrendered peacefully and is now in custody.
The York-Poquoson Sheriff's Office eventually responded to the scene when 911 calls started pouring in.
"The two officers in the front of the vehicle got out and had just started to interact with the two officers in the rear when shots started to ring out from that house," Sheriff Ron Montgomery said when describing the moments before the shooting.
The sheriff's office is now investigating the Mark's Pond Way shooting.
"I thought it was incredible that we didn't have any further loss of life or a more serious injury than we had," Montgomery said. "So, I was very grateful for that."
Susalis is charged with the following:
- three attempted aggravated murder of law enforcement officers
- two counts of attempted second-degree murder
- two counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony
- two counts of felony reckless handling of a firearm
- one count of felony destruction of property
- one count of felony shooting into an occupied dwelling
He is currently incarcerated in the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail.