Police Shoot, Kill Pleasanton Domestic Violence Suspect Following Standoff

PLEASANTON (CBS SF) -- A domestic violence call late Thursday morning at a Pleasanton apartment complex on the edge of the city's Hacienda Business Park turned into an hours-long standoff between a man and police officers, eventually ending in the afternoon with an officer-involved shooting after the man exited the building armed with a knife.

Police said Thursday afternoon that the man was confirmed dead at the scene.

The incident began at 11:51 a.m. when police received a call from a victim of domestic violence at 4899 Willow Rd. When officers arrived on the scene, they located the man, who refused to come out of an apartment unit.

"We know the public wants to know more, which is why we're moving quickly to gather the facts," Pleasanton police Lt. Erik Salacci said Thursday evening.

Still frame from bystander video of moment of fatal police shooting of domestic violence suspect, February 17, 2022. (Credit: Luis Castillo)

The suspect was barricaded inside a ground floor unit of The Galloway apartments for several hours. Just after 3:30 p.m., police officers were seen breaking a window, appearing to get ready to enter the unit. Moments later, as seen on a video taken by a neighbor, the suspect walked out of the apartment in front of officers. On the video, a shot is heard and the suspect turns toward an officer and appears to lunge as the officers open fire.

Police outside a broken apartment window on Willow Ave. near Owens Dr. in Pleasanton following an officer-involved shooting, February 17, 2022. (CBS)

The neighbor who shot the video said a couple had recently moved into the apartment and the woman worked in the apartment complex leasing office.

"I was trying to make sure he was OK," said neighbor Luis Castillo. "I heard he was crying over the phone and the other people, too, came out right away. That's when I saw the commotion. There was people across the street, everyone was a little shaken by what happened."

Speaking about the suspect, Castillo added: "I met him about a month ago. Usually I'll walk my dog and see him out with his girlfriend. He seemed like a nice guy."

Another neighbor said that, after three-plus hours into the standoff, she heard flash-bang devices and saw police breaking the window before the man emerged and was shot.

Pleasanton police said the suspect came out of the apartment armed with a knife.

"Two officers were involved in that [officer-involved shooting] and are uninjured," said police spokesman Lt. Eric Silacci. "We can confirmed the suspect is deceased. We're not releasing the officers' names at this time. We are in the process of conducting our investigation. The Alameda County District Attorney's Office is also on scene and conducting their investigation. We know the public wants to know more, which is why we're moving quickly to gather facts."

(CBS)

© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Bay City News and KPIX correspondent Katie Nielsen contributed to this report

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