Although the incident occurred last April, the Chandler Police Department just released the video of the shootout yesterday. Both officers survived being shot multiple times.
During the early morning of April 23, 2016, Officer Joshua Pueblo went to the Walmart store to help fellow officer Daniel Colwell. Colwell had gone to the store to evict a person who had previously trespassed in the store. The suspect was later identified as Mitchell Oakley. The video begins showing Pueblo walking in the store to answer what appeared to be a non-emergency call.
The officers can be seen outside the McDonald’s restaurant located in the store. Video inside McDonald’s shows something is happening at the entrance way of the restaurant. Customers in the restaurant can be seen reacting to the shots being fired; an employee and another customer can be seen running to the back of the store.
The next clip shows the entrance way to McDonald’s. Oakley is standing at the entrance as the two officers approach him and one comes within inches of the alleged trespasser. The suspect pulls a gun and fires, hitting each officer multiple times. Pueblo, who was shot in the face, managed to get away to safety. Colwell chased after Oakley and fell, hitting a sign near the entrance to Walmart. Oakley then runs out of the store and stops to pick up something he dropped, presumably his gun. Colwell, while in a sitting position after having fallen, shot and killed the fleeing man as he bent down to pick up the item he dropped.
Colwell was taken to hospital and released the same weekend. Pueblo, who was shot in the arm and face, was initially hospitalized in the ICU but was later transferred to an ordinary ward.
Oakley, who was described by police as a transient, had a criminal record, and spent time in jail for aggravated assault, car theft and destruction of jail property. He was last released from jail in March 2015.
A few days after the shootings, Chandler Police Chief Sean Duggan praised the bravery of the two officers saying they put their lives on the line and “literally saved people inside the store.” He also said the incident served as a reminder of how dangerous the job is.
Pueblo is now recovering at home and is on medical leave. Colwell is back on the job.
