Fairfax police fatally shoot armed man

Fairfax County police fatally shot an armed man in his Centreville town-house garage early Thursday.

Two people, including a neighbor and a woman inside the home with the man, called police to the town house in the 6100 block of Kendra Way around 1:30 a.m. for a disturbance, Fairfax County Police Department spokeswoman Mary Ann Jennings said.

When six officers arrived on the scene, they saw the garage door of the house open and the man, who has been identified as 34-year-old Ricardo Leon, inside with either a shotgun or a rifle, Ms. Jennings said.

“He started to approach them, armed,” Ms. Jennings said. “They issued orders for him to drop his weapon and to stop advancing.”

When Mr. Leon did not comply, several officers fired their service weapons, striking and killing the man, she said.

Four officers involved have all been placed on administrative leave since the shooting. Police are continuing to investigate the incidents that led up to the shooting and have interviewed the woman who was inside the town house. Several windows on the upper levels of the town house were broken out when officers arrived, Ms. Jennings said.

“It’s clear there was something going on,” she said.

Police could not confirm the relationship of the two people on Thursday or say whether officers have previously been called to the home for similar disturbances.

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