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Home > News > 21-year-old Emmett man charged with aggravated battery for shooting Eagle Police officer

21-year-old Emmett man charged with aggravated battery for shooting Eagle Police officer

An Eagle Police officer is recovering after being shot twice at the end of a short vehicle pursuit early Monday just north of Star.

The man who shot the officer, 21-year-old Matthew S. Kelly of Emmett, is in custody and charged with felony counts of aggravated battery and eluding arrest.

The officer underwent surgery earlier today for injuries to his arm and shoulder area and is listed in stable condition.

Kelly did not appear to be injured in connection with the incident.

The incident began just after 7:30 a.m. Monday when deputies got a report from the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office about a burglary at a home on Idaho 20/26. That victim reported someone just stole a yellow motorcycle from their property and was headed towards Star on Idaho 44.

The Eagle Police officer responded to the call and saw someone – later identified as Kelly – driving a yellow motorcycle, which matched the one recently stolen, near the Idaho 16/Beacon Light Road intersection.

The officer tried to pull over the motorcyclist, who then drove west on Beacon Light. The pursuit was very brief as the motorcycle almost immediately began to malfunction near N. Pollard Lane. Kelly jumped off the motorcycle.

Initial information indicates it was when the officer stopped his patrol car to investigate that Kelly opened fire, shooting into the officer’s car, hitting and injuring him. The officer then returned fire.

Kelly ran into neighborhood near the River Birch Golf Course.

A Star Police officer responding to the original call for service arrived at the Pollard Lane location and found the injured Eagle Police officer out of his car. The Eagle Police officer put a tourniquet on himself to help stop the bleeding.  The Star officer got the injured Eagle officer into the safety of his car and drove him to meet Ada County Paramedics at Floating Feather Road.

Ada County Emergency 911 dispatchers sent out a Code Red alert to the homes nearby, asking residents to shelter in place and to call if they had any information where Kelly might be hiding.

While paramedics arrived and took the Eagle Police officer to the hospital, Eagle and Star police officers, Ada County Sheriff’s Office deputies, and Boise, Meridian, Garden City, and Idaho State police officers quickly formed a perimeter around the area and began an intensive search for Kelly.

That search, which lasted about 90 minutes, included the use of K-9 police dogs and drones to search the rural area.

By that time, investigators identified Kelly as the suspect.

An Ada County Sheriff’s Office deputy patrolling nearby identified Kelly’s father riding a motorcycle near the same area and pulled him over. Investigators were eventually able to use information from that stop to contact Matthew Kelly by cell phone.

Matthew Kelly was located hiding in a corn field just southwest of the Idaho 16/Beacon Light intersection around 10:30 a.m. Investigators began talking with Kelly by cell phone while a drone located him and made sure he was no longer armed.

Kelly walked out of the field and tuned himself in about 10 minutes later without any further resistance. A K-9 dog later found the backpack Kelly had on earlier and two handguns nearby.

Detectives interviewed Kelly, arrested him, and booked him into the Ada County Jail late Monday afternoon. He has since been moved to the Canyon County Jail. Here is his booking photo in Ada County.

Deputies also arrested Kelly’s father, Kevin Kelly, Monday afternoon on unrelated burglary charges and booked him into the Ada County Jail.

Both Kellys are set to make their initial court appearances Tuesday afternoon.

The Boise Police Department is the lead agency for the Multi-Agency Critical Incident Task Force investigation into the shooting.

Ada County Sheriff Steve Bartlett wanted to say “thank you” to all the citizens who called in tips and information, and the dozens of law enforcement partners from all over the Treasure Valley who helped us find and arrest Kelly before anyone else was hurt.