Fort Worth Police Chief Says Carjacking Suspect Killed By Officer Ignored Command To Drop Gun
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Less than five seconds.
That's how long it took from the time a Fort Worth Police officer jumped out of his cruiser to the moment he fired his weapon.
It happened Sunday afternoon, April 18, in a neighborhood near Highway 121 and North Riverside Drive.
Police said they were called about a man trying to "steal a vehicle by force."
The officer who responded spotted the man down a street and pulled over as the man began to run.
Fort Worth Police released body cam video of the incident on Monday, April 19.
Fort Worth Police Chief Neil Noakes said the man pointed a weapon at the officer and the officer gave "multiple commands" to drop the weapon.
You can hear the officer say on the body cam video, "Put the gun down, put it down," then he immediately started firing.
The officer fired six times.
Police said they think the suspect, 31, may have fired once, but that is still under investigation.
"Any loss of life is tragic. And unfortunately that's what we're here to talk about today, but we also understand the importance of transparency," Noakes said.
Noakes said the officer involved has been with the department for four years.
The officer was placed on administrative leave as the investigation is ongoing.
A witness, Scott Ross, said he saw the officer approaching the suspect and heard gunshots.
"[The officer] jumped out and yelled 'Stop, stop stop' and then I heard the gunshots," Ross said. "And then I walked out here to see exactly what happened, and a police officer was kneeling over the body over here."
Police have not yet released the identity of the suspect as they are still working to notify next of kin.
