CHATHAM, Ill. -- A man tried to rob an off-duty police officer before shooting the officer twice and fleeing, Chicago police said Friday.
The Calumet District officer, a 7-year-veteran, was walking about 3:30 a.m. in the 8200 block of South Evans Avenue with a bag of food when he was approached from behind by an armed man. During the robbery attempt, the man shot the officer in the leg and left hand, said Monique Bond, spokeswoman for the Chicago Police Department.
The officer fired at the robber as he fled, but police do not know whether the robber was wounded, she said.
The officer was taken to Stroger Hospital in Chicago and later released.
"He's recovering," Bond said. "He's very shaken up."
No arrests have been made.
"I think this just goes to show that ... gun violence has no boundaries," Bond said. "Even a police officer can be a victim."