EL PASO, Texas (AP) - El Paso police say two officers fatally shot an armed 22-year-old man after he attempted to get inside a children’s day care center.
Police spokesman Sgt. Chris Mears said officers on Thursday morning shot the man, who wasn’t identified, after he ignored commands and made a “threatening motion” with his gun toward them.
The man died at the scene. It’s the third fatal shooting by El Paso police this year.
Officers had responded after receiving a report of a man who appeared to be distraught and holding a gun to his head while walking behind a business. Several schools nearby were placed on lockdown as a precaution after being alerted by police.
“We do know that literally seconds before the officers’ arrival, the subject had been banging on the back door, trying to make entry into the day care,” Mears said. “And so this situation, as tragic as it is that the man died here at the scene, could have been much more tragic.”
Some residents near the Kids Campus and Daycare said they heard several gunshots. Edmundo Lopez said he and his wife were home when they heard “two or three shots.”
Police didn’t say what type of gun the man had or how many times he was shot. The officers, whose names weren’t released, have been placed on administrative duty.
One officer has been with the department for six years and the other for around five months, Mears said. The shooting remains under investigation.
In January, police fatally shot 33-year-old Andy Martinez after he displayed a handgun during a traffic stop. In April, police fatally shot 22-year-old Erick Emmanuel Salas Sanchez when he used a metal object to threaten officers responding to a burglary call.
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