Dash Cam Shows Bullet-Proof Vest Save Cop's Life In Shootout

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STOCK ISLAND (CBSMiami) -- A Monroe County Sheriff's deputy has his training and equipment to thank during a shootout near Key West, in which he survived a gunshot to the chest.

The police department has released videos on Youtube from each of the two officers involved in the incident that took place on October 24th.

The first video shows the deputy pursuing alleged armed robbery suspect, Timothy Thomas, 25, through some back roads, when Thomas crashed into a stop sign. The officer quickly ordered the driver to raise his hands just before gunshots are exchanged. The video ends with Thomas trying to to drive off.

In the arriving backup officer's video, you can see the deputy on the ground returning fire. The suspect later abandoned his car down the block. According to the police report, officers found bullet casings and a black ski mask inside the suspect's car.

Thomas suffered two gunshot wounds and was later discovered at a home in Key West.

A perimeter was set up around the house and negotiators were able to convince Thomas to give himself up.

"We were not going to let this guy remain at large where he was a threat to law enforcement and to the community," said Sheriff Rick Ramsay in a statement. "Our officers, with the assistance of many other agencies, worked tirelessly chasing down leads until we got him."

The officer who was hit by gunfire was treated at the hospital for an abrasion across his chest and noted that the metal plating inside his vest was able to stop the bullet from penetrating through.

He was checked out and released.