ARLINGTON (WBAP/KLIF News) – The Arlington Police Department said the theft suspect who was shot by a police officer at the Parks Mall on Sunday had threatened to shoot officers prior to the incident.
The department said 21-year-old William Paul Dodd was involved in two 911 calls around 3:11 p.m., a little over an hour before the shooting.
The department’s Lieutenant Chris Cook said Dodd called dispatch to report that he was involved in a car chase with Arlington officers on Friday, November 24.
A uniformed officer attempted to pull Dodd over for a traffic violation near Bowen and Sublett but he took off. The department said the “vehicle pursuit was terminated and the case remains under investigation.”
“Mr. Dodd claimed that he was suspect in an evading arrest call. He said at one point during the call ‘I know Arlington is looking for me but I got a gun so if y”all pull me over, I’m going to shoot, so just be ready,” said Cook.
He said Dodd said that he was at Stovall Park and sounded incoherent during the call. When officers arrived at the Park, Dodd was no where to be found.
The second 911 call was initiated by the dispatcher after Dodd was disconnected. Cook said in the second call, Dodd said that he had a gun on him and would shoot at police.
Over an hour later, officers responded to a theft investigation at the Sunglass Hut inside the Parks at Arlington Mall.
Dodd was accused of stealing two pairs of sunglasses. Investigators said when officers approached Dodd, he took off and ran towards an escalator to go from the lower deck to the upper deck near the food court.
Cook said that’s when Dodd allegedly pulled a B.B. gun from his waistband and pointed it at officers. An officer returned fire, striking Dodd who remains in the hospital in critical condition.
The mall was evacuated during the incident and no bystanders were injured during the ordeal.
Dodd, who is no stranger to the Arlington police department, had an active warrant for his arrest for Making a False Report to a Police Officer stemming from an incident in September, where he falsely claimed he had been shot in a drive-by shooting.
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