An officer with the San Francisco Police Department is recovering in the hospital this morning, after an attempt to thwart an auto burglary ended with him violently pinned against his vehicle.

According to SFPD spokesperson Officer Carlos Manfredi, it was midnight last night/this morning when an officer was called to the Mirabel Avenue (not Mirabela, as reported elsewhere) and Shotwell Street, which is just steps from Precita Park.

When he arrived, the officer "stepped out of his patrol vehicle to investigate" a possible auto burglary. That's when, Manfredi says, the burglary suspect "attempted to run the officer over" with a stolen BMW and "struck the officer, pinning him up against his vehicle."

"I saw a white BMW racing down the street," , witness Dierdre Hill told NBC Bay Area, and then, she says, she heard "the officer scream, 'Aaaaaah. Help me!'"

The suspect then tried to flee, Manfredi says, but was "thwarted when another patrol vehicle arrived on scene."

"The suspect struck the second patrol vehicle, but was unable to escape," and the suspect was taken into custody "without any further incident."

The BMW, it appears, was towed from the scene:

The injured officer was transported to San Francisco General Hospital, with injuries Manfredi characterized as possible "broken ribs and unknown leg injuries." He remains in stable condition this morning.

Manfredi says that "there were two other possible suspects that may have been involved and they have been detained pending further investigation," but that "there are no other outstanding suspects at this time." As of publication time, police declined to name the driver of the BMW, citing the ongoing investigation.