ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., April 30 (UPI) -- A St. Petersburg, Fla., police officer shot and seriously wounded a burglary suspect who was wielding an ax, officials said.
The incident began about 2 a.m. Sunday when police received a call from a man who said he had been robbed of his bicycle by a person carrying a large ax, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found the suspect, identified as Anthony J. Stahley, 27, riding the stolen bike in a nearby alley, authorities said.
The suspect allegedly threatened Sgt. Karl D. Lounge, who had arrived as backup, with what police described as an ax with a 3-foot yellow handle.
Lounge then shot at the suspect "several times," a police spokesman said.
Stahley, who was on probation for aggravated assault after threatening a neighbor with a baseball bat in 2010, was taken to Bayfront Medical Center and was in critical condition after surgery.
Lounge was placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is reviewed. In 2008, he fatally shot a distraught man armed with a machete and a .45-caliber pistol.
