Teen dies after being shot by Glendale police near 63rd Avenue, Citrus Way

Gloria Rebecca Gomez and Angela Cordoba Perez, Arizona Republic
·2 min read
Glendale Police Department officers block off a parking lot on 63rd and W. Citrus Way near The Arrive Apartments complex in Glendale, Ariz. on July 6, 2022.
Glendale Police Department officers block off a parking lot on 63rd and W. Citrus Way near The Arrive Apartments complex in Glendale, Ariz. on July 6, 2022.

A 15-year-old boy was taken to the hospital with critical injuries on Wednesday after a shooting involving Glendale police near 63rd Avenue and West Citrus Way.

The unidentified teenager who was shot died after being taken to the hospital, according to Glendale Police spokesperson Sgt. Randy Stewart.

During a news conference on Wednesday afternoon, Stewart said detectives were looking for a stolen vehicle which they found near an apartment complex in the area of the shooting around 1:30 p.m. Police found two people inside the suspected stolen vehicle — a 15 and 16-year-old, Stewart said.

Police approached the vehicle and spoke with the 15-year-old driver, who told them there was a gun inside the car.

Officers warned him not to reach for the gun as they were attempting to arrest him, but police said the teen struggled during his arrest and reached into the car for the weapon. At that point, an undercover officer not wearing a body camera shot the teen, Stewart said.

It is unclear how many times he was shot.

Emergency personnel gave the teen CPR before taking him to a local hospital, where he later died from his injuries. The 16-year-old was taken into police custody without incident, Stewart said.

No officers were injured during the shooting, according to a tweet by Glendale police.

Police said a weapon was found inside the car.

At least one other officer did have a body camera on and nearby building cameras will be examined by police, Stewart said. The Buckeye Police Department will carry out an independent investigation into the incident, he said.

Stewart said apprehending people who have stolen cars can pose a risk to officers, because the theft is usually connected to other crimes.

"Unfortunately there's a lot of crime associated with stolen vehicles. A lot of people are dealing with weapons ... So they're very dangerous for us, which is why we'll try to do some type of high-risk stop where we can try to do our best to take those people safely into custody," he said.

Reach breaking news reporter Angela Cordoba Perez at Angela.CordobaPerez@Gannett.com or on Twitter @AngelaCordobaP.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. 

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 15-year-old boy dies after being shot by Glendale police