Dramatic footage captured the moment a man suspected of killing his girlfriend opened fire on an Illinois State Trooper during a traffic stop – only for the cop to heroically chase him down and ram him with his cruiser. Cristobal Santana (pictured left), 37, was caught on a dashcam camera unloading a hail of bullets onto officer Dakotah ‘Kody’ Chapman-Green (pictured bottom right), before beating the wounded officer with his gun.
Santana initially was able to flee the scene and became locked in a daring police pursuit, with the shooter also suspected of killing his girlfriend, special needs teacher Adrianna Lopez, 37, in Chicago last week. Despite Chapman-Green suffering a brain bleed and skull fractures, the courageous officer dashed back into his vehicle and tracked down the gunman himself. In a staggering move, the officer mowed down Sanatana at a high speed to bring the incident to a sudden end, as he sent the suspect flying through the air and leaving him sprawled out across the road.
Before the shooting unfolded, Santana was being sought by authorities in connection with the alleged killing of Lopez on October 22. Two days later, he was stopped while driving through Springfield, Illinois, with dashcam footage showing the moment Santana was pulled over by Chapman-Green. The two are seen talking when the suspect emerges slowly from his car, appearing to try and conceal the fact he has a gun.
Chapman-Green quickly notices the firearm and begins to back off, but was not able to gain any real distance before Santana opened fire. He shoots the officer multiple times as he attempts to flee the hail of bullets, before coming out from behind the side of his vehicle to pursue Chapman-Green on foot. Stunning surveillance footage from a nearby CCTV camera shows Chapman-Green running for his life as a manic Santana continues to unload a volley of bullets.
Despite being hit in the legs multiple times, the officer did not give up and chased Santana to a parking lot, where Santana viciously beat him with the gun, the New York Post reports. Eventually the suspect returned to his car and jumped back in before speeding away while a wounded Chapman-Green can be seen staggering back into the frame. While many would have called for backup and been rushed to hospital, Chapman-Green continued in his vehicle and helped his fellow officers as they became embroiled in a high-speed pursuit.
Santana’s eventual arrest came at approximately 1:58am, just over three hours after the roadside shooting erupted at around 10:47pm on October 24. After his heroics, Chapman-Green was rushed to hospital, where he was treated for a brain bleed and skull fractures. He was pictured unconscious in his hospital bed with black eyes and bruises across his face, with a trooper’s hat perched on his bed and a sign from a local kindergarten class reading: ‘You are our hero!’
The state trooper is still recovering from his injuries, but his fiancée Maddy Kinsel (pictured right) confirmed he is recuperating well. She told the State Journal-Registe r: ‘He still has a long road ahead of him but God was with him that night and protected him from the absolute worst.’ His father Jim Green also said his son was doing well. He added: ‘He loves being a trooper and he’ll never quit being a trooper. He has one speed, and that’s go.’ Illinois State Police Director Brendan F. Kelly told reporters Tuesday: ‘He’s still in the hospital and continues to improve each day.’
Meanwhile, Santana was also hospitalized after being slammed by the police cruiser, and officials have not confirmed if he remains in hospital and only say he is ‘in custody and receiving appropriate medical care.’ He is expected to remain in custody until his trial, officials said Tuesday. Santana is facing five criminal charges including two counts of attempted murder, aggravated battery to a police officer and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Two days before his fateful car chase, Santana allegedly killed his Pre-K teacher girlfriend Lopez, shooting her ten times in the chest outside her Chicago home. Investigations into the murder are still ongoing, with Chicago police saying a ‘known man’ in a dark SUV shot Lopez. Santana has not been officially named by police as a suspect in the slaying, but state police said they were seeking to question him over the killing.
Lopez’s family have spoken out to call for action over her killing, and claim that they have seen a video of someone shooting and killing Lopez, according to the Chicago Tribune. Lopez’s cousin Martiza Torres told the outlet that the teacher had recently filed for a protection order from Santana due to his alleged history of violent behavior. A vigil for the educator was held Friday evening, where the local community reacted with shock at her grisly killing.
Dozens of people lined up in pink, her favorite color, as they read heartbreaking tributes. At the end of the ceremony, her loved ones reportedly chanted: ‘Vive Adrianna!’ Celia Martinez, a friend who also taught alongside Lopez, told the Chicago Sun Times that she was a ‘social butterfly’ who got on with everyone she encountered. ‘She has made many different friends and many different families along the way,’ Martinez said. ‘We’re teachers… We come together when it’s one of our own.’ ‘What’s comforting is that her memories always live on,’ she continued. ‘And because of the kind of person she was, we will continue to live our lives the way she would want us to.’
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