Suspect fatally shot by West Hartford officer identified

The Office of Inspector General has identified the suspect shot and killed by a West Hartford police officer Tuesday.

Mike Alexander-Garcia, 34, was one of two people who fled from police in a stolen Hyundai Elantra on New Britain Avenue near Westfarms, according to the inspector general.

The stolen car eventually crashed into two other vehicles and became disabled at the intersection of New Britain Avenue and South Street.

Alexander-Garcia unsuccessfully tried to carjack two different vehicles before he ran into a service bay at Town Fair Tire at 980 New Britain Avenue and jumped into a Toyota Rav4, the inspector general said in his preliminary status report.

West Hartford Officer Andrew Teeter followed Alexander-Garcia into the service bay with his K9 partner and deployed the dog into the Toyota in an effort to arrest the suspect.

Teeter then got into the front passenger side of the Toyota to apprehend Alexander-Garcia.

That is when Alexander-Garcia backed the SUV out of the service bay with Officer Teeter and the K9 still inside and tried to drive away, according to the report.

The SUV struck two other vehicles, including Teeter's police cruiser as Teeter ordered Alexander-Garcia to stop.

Officer Teeter fired several shots, hitting Alexander-Garcia and the SUV crashed into a utility pole across the street from Town Fair Tire, according to the report.

Alexander-Garcia was taken to the hospital where he later died.

Officer Teeter suffered a broken rib and several head lacerations, according to the inspector general. The K9 was not hurt.

The second suspect, Lyle Solsbury, was quickly taken into custody down the road from Town Fair Tire.

The Office of the Inspector General, state police, and West Hartford police are conducting the investigation into the fatal shooting.

West Hartford Mayor Shari Cantor released a statement about the investigation.

“Any loss of life is tragic in such a difficult situation. The videos that have been released are undeniably hard to watch. Thankfully, Connecticut has been a national leader in developing a fair, independent, and transparent system for investigating police-involved shootings. I am confident that our Police Department will work together with state authorities to ensure that a comprehensive and thorough investigation is conducted into this incident,” Cantor said in a statement.

“The West Hartford Police Department greatly appreciates and respects the obligation of the Inspector General’s Office to release this video footage to the public. This was a dangerous situation involving multiple attempted car jackings and I encourage the public and media to review all of the details of what the Inspector General’s Office has released. The West Hartford Police Department believes strongly in transparency, and in all facts being gathered and impartially evaluated. To that end, state law clearly places the Inspector General’s office as the lead investigative entity of this incident, and we will continue to fully cooperate with them as they conduct their work,” West Hartford Police Chief Vernon L. Riddick said in a statement.