Phoenix Police Release Body Cam Video Of April 14 Gas Station Shootout

PHOENIX, AZ —The Phoenix Police Department released a Critical Incident Briefing (CIB) video Thursday that it said shows footage of the April 14 incident in which a female police officer allegedly was shot by suspect Nicholas Cowan at a north Phoenix gas station.

The video features footage from both the female officer's body camera and a male officer's body camera. The footage shows the female officer being shot by the suspect and the male officer returning fire, according to Phoenix police.

Police said the suspect eventually abandoned his vehicle and left the scene, calling an associate to pick him up.

The female officer, a 23-year-veteran of the department who is assigned to the Black Mountain Precinct, was injured in the confrontation and remains under medical care, according to the PPD.

The suspect, Cowan, eluded police for three days, but was arrested at a property near 66th Street and Osborne Road in Scottsdale on April 17. A team from the Phoenix Police Department's Tactical Support Bureau negotiated with Cowan, 35, for several hours prior to his surrender, police said.

Cowan was transported to a local hospital for treatment of injuries police said they believe he suffered during the shootout at the gas station. Upon his release from the hospital, he was booked into jail on two counts of attempted murder, among other charges.

Police also arrested Nicole Montalbano, 33, on suspicion that she helped Cowan evade capture, police said.

According to police, the initial incident took place at a gas station in the area of Cave Creek Road and Beardsley Road. The PPD said the officers were at the location to speak with a woman after she called police to say her boyfriend, Cowan, was at risk of taking his own life.

The woman reportedly told officers that she preferred to make the report at the gas station because she was afraid the suspect would become violent if officers came to the residence where the couple was staying.

In the video from the female officer's camera, the officers are interviewing the girlfriend when the suspect arrives at the gas station in a light blue sedan at about 10:35 a.m.

The female officer begins to approach the vehicle, when the suspect raises a gun and opens fire, hitting the female officer.

The female officer falls, but her body camera continues to record the male officer taking cover behind a vehicle and firing at the suspect, and the suspect shooting at the officer.

In the CIB video, Sergeant Andy Williams, of the PPD's Public Affairs Bureau, slows down the footage and points out where bullets fired from the suspect's gun have impacted the wall of the building behind the male officer.

The PPD said the Professional Standard Bureau has started an internal investigation —and criminal investigation — into the officers' conduct during the shootout at the gas station. Once the criminal investigation is complete, it will be reviewed by the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, the PPD said.

"Conclusions about whether the actions of the officers are consistent with department policy and the law will not be made until all facts are known and the investigation is complete," Williams said.