Last Updated on June 24, 2021 by CCAR Staff
A pair of deputies shot and killed an unarmed driver who held an “L-shaped” object following a brief pursuit in Norwalk on Wednesday morning, authorities said.
An LAPD helicopter first spotted the man driving a large Ford utility box van erratically in the city and alerted Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies, the Sheriff’s Department said.
Around 9:50 a.m., two patrol deputies from the Sheriff’s Norwalk Station found the driver who slowed down for authorities, but then continued driving, the department said.
After less than a mile, the driver came to a stop at the intersection of Piuma Avenue and Alondra Boulevard, allowing deputies to get out of their patrol car and approach the van, said Lt. Brandon Dean with the Sheriff’s Homicide Bureau.
As the two deputies approached the van, the man took out an L-shaped object that resembled a gun, Dean said. At that point, the deputies fired at the man, striking him at least once. He was later pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities described the man to be in his 30s but did not immediately provide his identity.
After the shooting, the object was determined not to be a firearm, but Dean was unable to identify what kind of object it was.
Homicide detectives have yet to interview the deputies who killed the man, Dean said.
The department later learned the man was driving a vehicle that had been reported stolen earlier on Wednesday.
The 605 Freeway offramp at Alondra Boulevard remained closed to traffic on Wednesday evening as authorities continued their investigation.
