Uxbridge Police say BB gun was fired at cruiser

UXBRIDGE — Police in Uxbridge said someone fired a shot from an air-powered BB gun at a marked police car on Mendon Street Wednesday.

According to police reports, the patrol officer was traveling eastbound on Mendon Street near West River Road at around 11 p.m. when someone shot at the cruiser with what the officer said was an air powered rifle or pistol.

The shot missed hitting the cruiser because the person was apparently holding the gun sideways, police said. The officer said the suspect ran from the scene, which was searched by police. Neither the person nor the gun was found.

Police say there has been an uptick in Uxbridge and surrounding towns of people using air guns in drive-by style shootings of people and property.

Adult air guns can be powered by many sources, including compressed air, spring, nitro piston, CO2. Some are capable of shooting speeds above the speed of sound or 1,100 feet per second at sea level. They are also very accurate, precision pieces of equipment that shoot pellets and have prices that can get into thousands of dollars depending on the quality and options. Many air guns are replicas of popular firearms models.

An FID card is not required to possess an air gun in Massachusetts. Air guns are regulated by state law which limits their use by minors who are not accompanied by an adult, holding a sporting or hunting license, or holding a permit from the chief of police. Massachusetts law also prohibits anyone from discharging air rifles from across streets, alleys, public ways or railroads or railway right of ways.