TAOYUAN (Taiwan News) — Police in Taoyuan opened fire on a suspect driving a vehicle on Saturday evening but failed to apprehend him.

Officers in Taoyuan’s Zhongli District fired 12 shots at the suspect’s car after the driver refused to stop for a routine traffic inspection. The incident occurred at 9:40 p.m. near the intersection of Huanxi Road and Zhiguang Road, CNA reported.

Police first encountered the suspect at 9:35 p.m., when patrol officers stopped the vehicle for inspection. The driver refused to comply and reportedly rammed a police vehicle to flee the scene.

Officers gave chase and located the vehicle again at a traffic light roughly 10 minutes later. They ordered the driver to exit the car, but he again refused and began ramming other vehicles.

Out of concern for public safety, officers discharged 12 rounds at the fleeing vehicle. Despite this, the suspect escaped by ramming a civilian car and escaping the scene.

On Sunday, Wang Wei-li (王韋力), director of the local police precinct, held a press briefing to explain the situation. A special task force has been established to locate and arrest the suspect.