Man shoots himself during felony vehicle stop in Collinsville, police say

A man shot himself in the front seat of a vehicle that had been reported stolen after officers asked him to exit the car, according to the Collinsville Police Department.

Collinsville Police Department stopped in the parking lot of Walgreens, 1190 Collinsville Crossing Blvd around 6:21 p.m. on Friday. The vehicle was reported stolen from the Champaign-Urbana area and was involved in an alleged aggravated battery and stabbing.

According to a release issued by the police department, the vehicle had five occupants. The driver complied with orders from officers to exit the car and was taken into custody. The front seat passenger, identified as male, refused to exit as the driver alerted the officers that the passenger had a gun.

The three rear-seat passengers also exited the vehicle and indicated that the passenger had a gun, police said.

“Within seconds, the front-seat passenger sustained a self-inflicted gunshot wound,” the release states.

The passenger was treated by members of the Collinsville Fire Department EMS and airlifted to a St. Louis-area hospital. His condition was unknown as of Friday night.

Police have not identified any passengers or share their ages, hometowns, or genders. The release also didn’t say if anyone was taken into custody or charged.

Collinsville Police Department was not immediately available to answer these questions Sunday.

The Collinsville Police Department Investigations Division is conducting a follow-up investigation, with the assistance of the Illinois State Police Crime Scene Services. A representative for Region 5 of the ISP Crime Scene Services, which includes Madison County, could not immediately be reached Sunday.

This story was originally published November 1, 2020 at 12:27 PM.