Lubbock Police Officer Punches Woman After She Reaches for His Gun; 1 Suspect Arrested

Following an altercation with shots fired at a local nightclub, a man was taken into custody after it's said he assaulted an officer.

It all happened the morning of Sunday, January 17th, 2021 at around 2 a.m.

KAMC News reports that an officer was patrolling the area around Bash Riprock's, which is located in the 2400 block of Main Street, when he heard four gunshots from inside the club. The officer then saw a group of people running away.

One person told the officer that the suspect, Avery Bently Thomas, was the one who fired the shots.

The officer noticed Thomas walking away from the club, so he stopped him to talk. While conversing, the officer noted Thomas' hands were inside his sweatpants. His hand was holding an object, police said.

The officer grabbed Thomas' wrist, revealing a pistol with an extended magazine.

While the officer was taking Thomas into custody, a woman attempted to reach for the officer's gun. The officer responded by punching the woman.

As the officer was focused on the woman, Thomas punched the officer on the side of the head and ran. After catching up to Thomas, the officer was struck multiple more times. A group of people approached and yelled for Thomas to be released. More officers arrived on scene and detained Thomas.

While this all was going on, the gun that Thomas had, which was seized by the first officer, was lost and someone took it. It was never found.

Thomas was transported to the Lubbock County Detention Center, where he posted bond the same night.