An ATV rider is still being sought by police after intentionally striking an officer on Interstate 95 on Tuesday night, according to police.
Police said the incident happened in the northbound lane at the Packer Avenue ramp at about 7:16 p.m.
According to police, the incident began when an officer with the city's 12th police district, headed northbound on I-95, encountered "a group of roughly 50-60 ATVs." One rider, dressed in black clothing and wearing a black ski mask and operating a red quad, "stood out" to the officer as the rider exited at the Walt Whitman Bridge ramp, police said.
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The officer saw smoke coming from that ATV and suspected mechanical issues and followed the vehicle on the ramp.
At this time, officials said, the ATV rider turned his quad into the officer's motorcycle, causing the officer to lose control and crash.
"The rider took evasive action and intentionally rammed the officer and knocked him off his dirt bike. It was intentional, very intentional," Deputy Commissioner Mike Cram said.
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The rider of the ATV then fled the scene of the crash and left the injured officer behind, officials said.
The officer sustained an injured right foot and bruises on several part of his body and, police said, he is currently hospitalized in stable condition.
After the incident, police observed an ATV quad that matched the description of the vehicle involved in the crash riding along Richmond Street in the area of the city's 24th police district, officials said.
However, an investigation found that vehicle was not the one that was involved in the crash with the officer.
"He was detained. Ultimately, he was not identified as the one who knock the officer off his bike. But not surprising he had a warrant for a domestic. However, he was one of the people identified as riding the bikes," Cram said.
No arrests have yet been made and, law enforcement officials said, an investigation is ongoing.
Philadelphia police have ramped up their efforts to get illegal ATVs and dirt bikes off city streets at the direction of Mayor Cherelle Parker.
"We are not going to stop," Cram said about cracking down on ATV riders. "The people of these city absolutely do not support it. Every community we go to it's one of the top complaints we get is the ATV and dirt bikes and what a plague there are to the neighborhoods."
This is a developing story, check back for updates.
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