HOLLADAY — "Wow" was the common thought going through the minds of Unified police officers Wednesday, a day after an officer was shot right in the center of his jacket but somehow escaped a serious, potentially fatal injury.
The officers were searching Tuesday for a man suspected of robbing six banks and a 7-Eleven store since Oct. 25. Salt Lake City and Unified police were watching several banks, trying to anticipate where the suspected serial robber might strike again based on his previous patterns.
On Tuesday, two Unified officers dressed in undercover clothing were watching the Fresh Market, 3865 S. 2300 East, when a man matching the description of the robber walked into the story about 7 p.m. He was wearing a distinctive hat and fake facial hair, according to a Salt Lake County Jail report.
The officers followed the man inside. He turned around for an unknown reason and walked back out without attempting to rob anyone, said Unified Police Lt. Justin Hoyal.
As soon as the man stepped back outside, the officers approached him and tried to question him. Hoyal said the man immediately began throwing punches at the officer.
"It was a fight, I mean the whole way through," he said. "He was a very difficult person for them to fight with."
During the struggle, the man was able to grab one of the officer's guns and pull it out of its holster and then told the officers he was going to shoot, the report states.
At that point, the officer's "whole attention became, one, trying to get the weapon back and, two, keeping it so his partner didn't get shot, he didn't get shot or any citizens got shot," Hoyal said.
With both the officer's and the suspect's hands on the gun, the officer pushed the gun downward to try and keep it away from anyone, and a shot was fired.
The bullet went right into the center, lower portion of the officer's jacket and out the bottom without hitting any part of the officer's body.
The shot, however, lodged into one of the suspect's thighs, Hoyal said. But the man kept fighting and even threatened to shoot again, the report states. It wasn't until backup officers arrived that police were able to control him and place him under arrest.
Joshua Edward Jensen, 30, was taken to a local hospital to be treated for his gunshot wound. He was then booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of attempted murder, six counts of aggravated robbery, attempted aggravated robbery and disarming a police officer.
The officer was treated for a minor hand injury caused by the slide of his gun, Hoyal said.
Detectives were looking Wednesday into whether Jensen was under the influence of anything at the time of fight.
While investigators were processing the crime scene, "another detective arrived and happened to see a female sitting in a car intently looking at the situation," he said.
Police learned that the woman was the alleged getaway driver for all of Jensen's robberies. Tiffani Lalor, 32, of Salt Lake City was arrested for investigation of six counts of aggravated robbery and one count of attempted aggravated robbery.
Jensen is believed to have dressed as a woman when he robbed a Chase Bank, Hoyal said. Since then, detectives believe he has worn a fake mustache or beard and carried a gun in all the other robberies he is suspected of committing.
Court records show Jensen was convicted of drug possession and tampering with evidence in 2008. He was sentenced to probation and ordered to undergo drug treatment. He was found guilty of DUI in 2007 and also ordered to receive substance abuse treatment.
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