SHOTS rang out on a Wollongong street on Saturday afternoon as a prisoner tried to allegedly steal a gun and escape from custody.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The prisoner - a 34-year-old man facing multiple armed robbery charges - had been taken to Wollongong Hospital at about 3.30pm after complaining of abdominal pain.
The man was accompanied by an armed Corrective Services officer.
While at the hospital, the man allegedly punched the officer in the face and tried to steal his firearm before escaping from the hospital.
Once outside the front doors, the man ran down Crown Street and into Staff Street, with Corrective Services officers in hot pursuit.
During the chase, one of the officers fired two warning shots and the man then stopped running.
The man was then apprehended with the help of a member of the public.
Nobody was injured by the two shots and the Corrective Services officer was treated for minor facial injuries.
After the prisoner was captured, police closed off Staff Street in both directions and established a crime scene.
A second crime scene was also established within the hospital itself.
The man was taken to Wollongong police station on Saturday night where he was charged with escaping lawful custody and offences relating to assaulting and resisting an officer.
He was remanded in custody to appear at Port Kembla Local Court on January 21, 2015.