Police: Man in custody after pinning officer between vehicles in North Philadelphia

NORTH PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - A 24-year-old man is in custody after allegedly assaulting a police officer in North Philadelphia on Saturday night.

Just before 7:30 p.m., police were investigating a suspected stolen U-Haul van near Sedgley and Dauphin streets. Two officers blocked the U-Haul as it stopped for a nearby red light and ordered the suspect to surrender.

The suspect reportedly ignored several commands, accelerating the U-Haul and pinning one of the officers between the two vehicles as a result.

The officer's partner was able to free her after entering and reversing the U-Haul. The injured officer was transported to Temple University Hospital for treatment.

After the suspect fled the scene on foot, responding officers reportedly found his jacket struck on a barbed wire fence leading to a bridge on the 2800 block of Ridge Street. A subsequent heat signature from underneath the bridge led officers to the suspect, who was taken into custody.

Police have yet to identify the suspect. The incident remains under investigation.