Armed man fatally shot by Phoenix officers after robbing pawn shop, police say
A man suspected of armed robbery of a pawn shop died after being shot by officers in Phoenix on Saturday afternoon, police said.
The shooting occurred near 22nd Avenue and Indian School Road after the man pointed his handgun at officers, said Sgt. Brian Bower, a Phoenix Police Department spokesperson.
Phoenix officers were initially called just after 4 p.m. for reports of an armed robbery at a pawn shop near 19th Avenue and Indian School Road, according to Bower. The man and a woman reportedly stole numerous handguns from the shop before exiting and heading west on Indian School Road, Bower said.
Officers told the man to put his gun down and put his hands in the air, but he was uncooperative, Bower said. Officers then shot a foam projectile at him, but he ran from them, according to Bower.
“It’s for the less lethal aspect of it where we want to confront these dangerous individuals, and we want to try to change their pattern of behavior by using these less lethal (tools) to either happen to cooperate with us or put their hands up, put the guns down,” Bower said.
As officers pursued the man, he headed toward a truck and attempted to enter the vehicle, which contained one driver. Bower said the man pointed his handgun at officers as they attempted to "reengage" him, which is when officers shot him by the driver’s door.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Bower said. He has not yet been identified by police.
“There were a number of victims, witnesses, both directly and indirectly involved in this entire incident,” Bower said. “These situations are incidences that nobody anticipates, nobody wants to be involved in, again, whether it’s directly or indirectly.”
The woman who was with him was detained and questioned by police, according to Bower. Officers didn't know whether she would be booked into jail or what her charges would be, as detectives were still investigating the incident, he explained.
Bower said nobody from the community was injured in the incident.
As of Saturday evening, Indian School Road was closed between 19th and 23rd avenues for the investigation. Bower said there is no expected time for when the area will reopen.
Madeline Nguyen is a breaking news reporter for The Republic. Reach her at Madeline.Nguyen@gannett.com or 480-619-0285. Follow her on X @madelineynguyen.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Police: Man fatally shot by Phoenix officers after robbing pawn shop
