NEWS RELEASES City of Knoxville, Tennessee Madeline Rogero, Mayor FOLLOW THE MAYOR www.facebook.com/mayorrogero www.twitter.com/mayorrogero

Attempted Traffic Stop Leads to Arrest of Robbery Suspects

KPD View Officer Award Winners View Civilian Award Winners February 1, 2012 - Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero and Police Chief David Rausch named Knoxville Police Department Officer Jason Boston the Officer of the Month for November. Officer Boston has been with KPD since August 2008. Chief Rausch said that on November 28, 2011, at approximately 9:40 p.m., Officer Boston observed a silver Honda driving erratically on North Broadway. Officer Boston attempted to initiate a traffic stop on the vehicle. The vehicle turned from North Broadway onto Atlantic Avenue and then onto Pacific Street where the vehicle suddenly stopped. Chief Rausch said, "Officer Boston observed a handgun being thrown from the vehicle while a male passenger in the vehicle jumped from the car and fled on foot. Three additional suspects in the vehicle were detained for the investigation by Officer Boston." As officers were securing the suspects, two individuals approached the officers and indicated they had just been robbed by these suspects outside a market on Washington Pike. The victims indicated the four suspects approached them as they were leaving the market and demanded their money at gunpoint. They were not injured. The weapon thrown from the suspect's vehicle was an airsoft gun with an orange tip that had been painted black to make the gun look like a real semi-automatic handgun. Chief Rausch said, "As a result of Officer Boston's efforts, three robbery suspects were quickly removed from our streets. His actions prevented the victimization of additional innocent citizens." Mayor Rogero said, "We commend Officer Boston for his dedication to the safety of our city and his actions in helping to prevent future crimes."

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