FINDLAY, Ohio — It was certainly a busy day for local and regional law enforcement in Findlay after an Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper was shot during a traffic stop Wednesday night.
Robert Hathorn, 42, was taken into custody Thursday afternoon after a nearly 14-hour search.
The trooper has been identified as Josef Brobst. Both he and Hathorn are now in the hospital. Brobst is recovering from serious, but non-life-threatening injuries to his lower extremities. Hathorn sustained minor injuries to his hand, according to OSHP.
The hunt started at night after the traffic stop around 11:00 p.m. Wednesday on I-75 south. It continued into Thursday morning with the search forcing two local school districts to close around Findlay.
Findlay Mayor Christina Muryn says police set up a search perimeter and all businesses in that area were alerted.
Hathorn was eventually spotted by a civilian near the Walmart off of I-75.
A customer at Flag City Broker's Metal Recycling on County Road 223 was getting into his car when he saw Hathorn get arrested.
"I was getting ready to leave and cops swarm in," witness Jason Leone said, "and it was like they were hunting someone and they were coming up the riverbanks, it was just crazy."
Hathorn was taken into custody with no issues. No charges have been filed yet.
"From the immediate response of an injured officer to quickly establishing a perimeter and working together to canvass the region, we were able to ensure that those within the impacted area were alerted and focus our resources to capture the suspect without incident," said Muryn.
People were out Thursday night in downtown Findlay. Most people were aware of the shooting and the search but said it didn't stop them from going about their day as usual.
Overall, people stressed Findlay is a safe place and they trust their local law enforcement to keep them safe.
"I felt fine. I just figured it was under control and I didn't think too much about it," Jennifer Boyd said.
Cameron Huss, a local school teacher, believes the local districts made the right choice in closing for the day to keep everyone safe. He recently moved from an urban area and says he didn't expect incidents like this but also stresses he feels Findlay is a safe place to live.
"People are really unpredictable," he said, "and it could really happen anywhere. I don't think it should scare people away from Findlay. I don't see it happening another time or any time soon."
Findlay Schools and Liberty-Benton Local Schools are expected to reopen Friday.