Officer-involved shooting shuts down Auburn Boulevard

Auburn Boulevard was closed Sunday morning after an officer shot and injured a fleeing suspect, law enforcement officials said.

At 2:45 a.m., an officer approached a man and woman standing in the parking lot of the Ranch Motel on Auburn Boulevard, said Citrus Heights Police Department spokesman Lt. Dave Gutierrez in a release.

The officer searched the man, 24-year-old Nickolas Russo. Russo pulled away from the officer and ran away on foot. The officer chased him and fired his weapon an unknown number of times, according to the release. More officers arrived at the scene and found Russo had been shot in the upper torso. He was also in possession of a gun.

Russo was transported to the hospital and is stable condition.

The officer was not injured and has been placed on administrative leave.

According to the release, Russo has a prior history of weapons convictions, burglary and vehicle theft. He is under arrest for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, resisting a police officer, violation of parole and violation of probation.

Auburn Boulevard was closed north of Greenback Lane as the District Attorney’s office finishes a crime scene investigation, according to Lt. Jason Baldwin, spokesman for the Citrus Heights Police Department. It reopened at 1 p.m.

This story was originally published November 19, 2017 at 11:19 AM with the headline "Officer-involved shooting shuts down Auburn Boulevard."