PINELLAS PARK, Fla. — A suspect was fatally shot after he allegedly shot and injured a Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputy while allegedly trying to break into cars, according to authorities.

Officials said it happened in the Pinellas Park area in the 6300 block of 60th Avenue just before 7 p.m. Sunday.

St. Petersburg Police Department officials identified the suspect on Monday as 23-year-old Zion Bostick.

St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway held a press conference about the incident, saying a resident called 911 to report that someone was breaking into vehicles.

When deputies arrived, they tried to confront Bostick, leading to a chase.

A K9 handler, Corporal Matthew Aitken, 40, eventually spotted Bostick near a church and tracked him into a backyard.

Police say the man was waiting for them and fired several shots, hitting Aitken. Sergeant Jacob Viano, 49, who was backing up the deputy fired back, killing Bostick.

Aitken is currently in stable condition. Officials said he is expected to be OK. His dog was not injured.

Viano is on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Holloway says because this incident involves a sheriff’s deputy, the St. Pete Police Department is handling the investigation.

He said getting the call that the deputy was injured was not easy.

“When our phones went off and then you see where a deputy is shot, trust me that phone call, getting here is the longest drive in your life, trying to update, trying to figure out what’s going on with that deputy. It’s hard, it’s hard on everybody in the law enforcement community,” he revealed.

Holloway advised residents to never approach a suspect and to wait for authorities.

“We’d just rather for you to call us and if you can keep an eye on the person. Please do that but don’t try to confront the person. Thank God nothing happened to that gentleman, but at the same time he did the right thing because he saw someone committing a crime in his community and he didn’t want that in his community,” he said.