Unarmed man shot after charging at Mesa police officer
Apr 22, 2018, 8:51 AM | Updated: 3:27 pm
(Facebook/Mesa Police Department)
(Facebook/Mesa Police Department)
PHOENIX — A man charged at a Mesa police officer and was subsequently shot and taken to the hospital, according to Mesa Police Department spokesperson Detective Nik Rasheta.
Around 3 a.m. on Sunday morning, a police officer was driving on Main Street just west of Alma School Rd. when a man, who police believed to be in his 40s, ran into the street and blocked the car. A witness said the man approached the driver side of the car and the officer got out, Rasheta said.
The officer told the man to get off the street, but the man “aggressively approached as the officer retreated backward,” Rasheta said.
“The suspect then quickly charged the officer, causing him to fire his service weapon,” he said.
Rasheta said the man was believed to have been on drugs at the time.
The interaction didn’t last long – the time the officer stepped out of the car to shooting the gun was only about 10 seconds, according to Rasheta.
The suspect was in the hospital in serious condition as of 8 a.m. Sunday.
