RAVENNA — An Ohio man attempted to kill a police officer by strangling them, then shooting the agent with their own weapon.
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Matthew J. Ziegler drove to the Ravenna Police Department and stopped his car in the roadway at around 10:02 p.m. Thursday, July 13, a spokesperson with the department told WOIO.
The suspect then exited his vehicle and began to vandalize one of the marked Ravenna Police cruisers parked in front of the station. The exact extent of the vandalism was undisclosed at the time of reporting.
Officers saw the man damaging government property on security cameras and went outside to halt the action. However, when officers exited the building, Ziegler charged at them unarmed.
Ziegler attempted to strike the first officer in the face, which prompted the second officer to pull out their taser and deploy it. The suspect was reportedly unaffected by the taser. At this time, the man allegedly kept swinging his closed fists, trying to punch the officers.
The assailant then attacked the second officer by grabbing around their neck, attempting to strangle the agent. Both of them fell as a result.
Ziegler tried to take the second officer’s holstered gun during this time, but was unsuccessful.
With the help of other officers, Ziegler was placed under arrest and charged with attempted aggravated murder. Additional charges were expected to come pending the investigation.
The suspect was held at Portage County Jail.
It was unknown why Ziegler assaulted the officers at the time of reporting.