PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) –Phoenix Police Officer Tyler Moldovan, who was shot 8 times in December, including one in the head, has returned home after months of recovery in a rehabilitation center. He was shot several times while investigating a suspicious person on December 14.

Moldovan was flown to Deer Valley Airport around noon and taken home by an ambulance. Antennas of Family News Chopper in Arizona showed hundreds of people and officers lined up along 7th Avenue, just south of Deer Valley Road, to show their support for Moldovan. According to the police, the Moldovan family appreciates all the support they have received over the past few months.

“I was sad, it made me cry. I’m surprised he did it, I’m glad he did it,” Theresa Valentine said. Valentine was among the crowd gathered to show off her support.

“He’s a hero. he is a champion, I want to say more about him, he represents the blues very well, ”said Gary Meredith, another supporter.

Back on December 14, Moldovan officers and others responded to reports of vehicles, including a black Dodge Charger speeding and doing donuts near 19th Avenue and Camelback Road just after 2 a.m. Officers showed up to find skid marks and smoke in the air, but found no vehicles. Moments later, police were able to find the Charger parked in a parking lot near 15th Avenue and Camelback Road, where a man, identified as Essa Williams, was seen jumping the fence into the complex, leaving his vehicle. Court documents say the car had a gun case inside. Williams fled and was found hiding in a covered patio inside a nearby apartment complex. Williams was heard by officers at the scene talking to someone on the phone, saying he was “going to jail”. An officer asked Williams if he had any weapons, and he said no. According to police, Williams then pulled a gun from his waist and shot Moldovan multiple times. Williams was taken into custody after a fight with other officers and made comments asking officers to shoot him and that another person had shot Moldovan.

Moldovan had serious injuries and had little chance of living at the time due to his injuries. However, Moldovan continued to show signs of improvement and was eventually transferred to a rehabilitation center to continue his recovery. In March, Moldovan was able to shake and raise hands, pick up weighted bean bags, throw a ball down the hallway and ride a stationary bike. His wife wrote on Instagram that this was her second time on this stationary bike. The first time he did it he rode for 5 minutes with his left leg doing 100% of the work. She wrote that he rode it for 14½ minutes the second time around, and 5% of the work was also done on his right leg, which once had little to no movement. In the Instagram post, his wife wrote that her right side was the most affected.

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