FIRST ON 3: WPD officer on paid leave following chase

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — A Wilmington police sergeant is on administrative leave following a chase that ended at WPD headquarters.

Police say Jairo Checo, 34, called 911 at 5:38 a.m. Thursday saying he had his wife and children in a car and was threatening to kill them. Police say Checo led them on a chase for more than an hour through the city and county when the car stopped behind WPD headquarters. Police say an officer fired shots, but no one was hit. An internal affairs investigation is underway, police say.

Since that incident, police say Sgt. Matt Ingram has been placed on paid administrative leave after firing his weapon during this incident. Linda Rawley with WPD says it is standard practice for officers to be place on leave following an officer involved shooting. Ingram was hired by WPD in February of 1999.

Checo faces charges including first degree kidnapping, child abuse and assault with a deadly weapon on a law enforcement officer. Checo was employed with WPD from July 2 to Nov. 1, 2007, as a cadet in the Basic Law Enforcement Training Academy. Police say the woman and her children involved are safe and no one else was hurt.

New Hanover County Superior Court Judge Kenneth Crow granted a motion from WPD to seal the 911 call from Thursday morning and other public information, including the dispatch calls and records. That information is routinely released hours after an incident happens, and in fact, WPD released some of it despite the judge’s order. Deputy City Attorney Meredith Everhart, who sought the order, has not responded to a request from WWAY to release the full call given the partial release of information to this point.

When asked why the call was sealed while calls in most other cases are not, Wilmington Police Chief Ralph Evangelous told WWAY it was so his officers had time to fully investigate what happened. Evangelous then promised to release the call and more information by Tuesday morning, though the court order currently has it sealed until 5 p.m. Tuesday.

Among the many questions WPD is not answering at this point is which officer fired the shots and whether that officer or any others have been put on leave, as well as how the car got into the fenced off area behind headquarters.