Phoenix police fatally shoot man carrying BB gun near Interstate 17

PHOENIX – A man who had been running in out and of Phoenix street traffic carrying what was later identified as a BB gun died Monday after police officers shot him.

The 2 a.m. confrontation with Phoenix Police shut down Interstate 17 in both directions at Indian School Road near 23rd Avenue.

Police said the man, Ekom Udofia, 33, was pronounced dead at a hospital.

A police department spokeswoman said a witness called to report a man in the street disrupting traffic.

“He was not firing at cars. What we know is he was armed and there was traffic flowing and he was jumping in front of vehicles,” Sgt. Mercedes Fortune said.

Fortune said officers arrived and tried to get the man to put down what appeared to be a handgun but instead he came forward and aimed at them.

Two officers fired at him, Fortune said. After he went down, he still refused to let go of the gun, so “less lethal means” were used. By then, more police had arrived.

The suspect then raised the gun again and pointed toward officers. They shot him again.

Police said the first officers who arrived were a 30-year-old with two years of service and a 40-year-old with 13 years of service.

Additional officers on the scene were a 52-year-old with 21 years of service and a 28-year-old with three years of service.

It was the 22nd Phoenix officer-involved shooting of the year, according to KTAR News 92.3 FM research.

The investigation is ongoing.

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Jim Cross contributed to this report.

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