Police: Officer shoots suspected car thief in South Phila.

A man suspected of stealing a pizza-delivery car in South Philadelphia was shot in the arm Thursday night when he allegedly tried to run down officers in an attempt to evade arrest, police said.

Shortly after 9 p.m., the 29-year-old man allegedly stole the car, a Honda, at 10th and Catharine Streets in Bella Vista, said Chief Inspector Scott Small. The deliveryman had left the Honda running with the keys in the ignition, and the man just drove off with the car, Small said.

At 22d Street and Snyder Avenue, police saw the Honda driving north and tried to stop the vehicle, Small said. The Honda struck three parked cars and nearly hit several officers at 22d and Morris Streets.

That's where one officer shot the driver in the left forearm, Small said. The man was apprehended at 22d and Ellsworth Streets and taken to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was in stable condition.

Internal Affairs was investigating the shooting.