San Jose cop shoots at armed teen hiding in 55-gallon drum, officials say

Ezequiel Flores, 18, of San Jose, was booked Sunday at San Jose’s Main Jail on suspicion of robbery, burglary, possession of a loaded stolen firearm and brandishing a weapon in the presence of a peace officer, police said. less Ezequiel Flores, 18, of San Jose, was booked Sunday at San Jose’s Main Jail on suspicion of robbery, burglary, possession of a loaded stolen firearm and brandishing a weapon in the presence of a peace ... more Photo: San Jose Police Department Photo: San Jose Police Department Image 1 of / 28 Caption Close San Jose cop shoots at armed teen hiding in 55-gallon drum, officials say 1 / 28 Back to Gallery

San Jose police opened fired on an armed teen suspected of invading a home over the weekend before leading officers on a brief chase through a residential neighborhood and hiding in a 55-gallon drum, authorities said Tuesday.

Ezequiel Flores, 18, of San Jose, was uninjured in the police shooting.

He was booked Sunday in Santa Clara County’s Main Jail on suspicion of robbery, burglary, possession of a loaded stolen firearm and brandishing a weapon in the presence of a peace officer, according to the San Jose Police Department.

Officers originally responded to reports of a disturbance at 5:41 a.m. on the 500 block of South 10th Street. Two men allegedly armed with a handgun kicked the front door of the apartment down before fleeing.

Officers were dispatched to the same location nearly an hour later at 6:52 a.m. on reports of an armed robbery and home invasion involving the same suspects, police said.

Flores and a 17-year-old suspect reportedly attempted to flee the scene. Officers briefly lost sight of Flores after he climbed on top of a carport near the rear of the apartment and then hid in a 55-gallon drum while officers set up a perimeter to contain the area, police said.

Authorities said one officer followed Flores onto the carport as he jumped down into the parking lot of a business on South Tenth Street, and as Flores climbed out of the drum the officer reportedly saw him gripping a handgun.

The officer gave commands to Flores to drop the gun, police said, but he refused to drop the weapon.

The officer then opened fire and Flores dove behind a catering truck to avoid being shot, police said.

After the gunfire, more officers responded to the parking lot and gave Flores commands to drop his weapon. He was then taken into custody and transported to the hospital for a leg injury that likely occurred after jumping over a fence, police said.

The second suspect, a minor whose name was not released, was found hiding in a nearby yard and taken into custody, police said.

Following the arrests, the unidentified officer who shot at Flores was placed on paid administrative leave, which is standard protocol in officer-involved shootings.

Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani