A Fort Smith detective shot and injured another detective early Tuesday, police said.
The detective fired his gun while authorities searched an apartment as part of a homicide investigation, striking a second detective in the hand and chest, Fort Smith police Chief Danny Baker wrote in a news release. Baker said the detective who was shot wore a bulletproof vest, received only minor injuries and was treated and released from an area hospital.
The release doesn’t indicate why a detective shot a gun during a search, nor was either detective named.
The detective who fired his gun was placed on paid administrative leave, which the department said is “standard in any officer-involved shooting,” pending an investigation by the department and Arkansas State Police.
“We are thankful that no one was seriously injured and pray for all of our officers who continue to do a dangerous job during an extremely stressful and difficult time,” Baker wrote.
In a separate release issued just after 3:15 a.m., police said a check on a shots fired report at Pike Place Apartments, 700 N. Albert Pike Ave., resulted in a homicide investigation. Additional details about the nature of the homicide weren’t immediately released.