Cop Shoots Man With Projectile Launcher During Standoff: Channahon PD

CHANNAHON, IL — A Channahon officer used a projectile launcher to shoot a 28-year-old criminal suspect in the abdomen during Monday morning's standoff with police, according to deputy police chief Adam Bogart.

The incident happened around 9 a.m. and police put Galloway School, Channahon Junior High and Families of Faith Christian Academy on lockdown as a precaution.

Channanon police said that 28-year-old Naperville resident Ashar Simmons refused medical treatment after being hit with the 40 mm sponge round. By 1 p.m., Simmons was in custody at the Will County Jail on charges of threatening a public official and obstructing a peace officer.

According to Bogart, the following events led to the Simmons' capture by area police officers:

• Channahon police responded to a 911 hang-up in the area Municipal Drive where Simmons took the phone of a woman he knew during an argument and ran off into a storage facility on Northern Illinois Drive.
• When confronted by police, Simmons refused to surrender, telling Channahon police he would disarm them and that he had a knife in his bag.
• Simmons then ran into a neighborhood and told the officers chasing after him that he had also gun in his bag.
• On Sandpiper Drive, Simmons stopped running, but refused to surrender, telling police he was a Marine veteran.
• In hopes of de-escalating the situation, several officers with specialized training were sent to Sandpiper Drive, including one officer who is a military veteran.

"For nearly an hour, officers continued to speak with Simmons in the street," Bogart's press release stated. "Simmons continued to disobey officers, repeatedly telling officer he would not comply with their commands."

Simmons was arrested, and a knife was recovered after Channahon's officer shot him with the sponge projectile as Simmons reached for his bag, Bogart advised.

"The Channahon Police Department wants to thank members of the Shorewood Police Department, Minooka Police Department and the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office for assisting in the incident," Bogart announced.