ABHA, 3 March 2008 — A police lieutenant at a checkpoint outside Abha was critically injured yesterday when a Saudi youth, wanted in relation to another crime, deliberately ran over him. The officer, who suffered multiple fractures and head injuries, is receiving treatment at the Asir Central Hospital. He will be airlifted to Riyadh soon.
The officer was ran over while waiting in ambush for the youth, who was wanted in connection with a crime at a location midway between Abha and Khamis Mushayt. The officer set an ambush after receiving an urgent message saying that the youth was speeding along the King Abdullah Road that connects picnic points in Abha and Khamis Mushayt, a police source told Arab News yesterday.
“The officer was run over while he was doing his duty. He had tried to stop the youth’s car with a tire-bursting device but it failed,” said the source. The suspect escaped and police launched a manhunt.
