Stockton, Calif. Police Department: Police shot dead gunman who loaded them at police station, chief says

The man “was armed with a handgun and was firing his gun continuously – while walking – he appears mostly in the air, but could have shot some of the vehicles and other things in this batch before”, Police Chief Eric Jones said. Wednesday at a press conference.

“He kept walking the gun a bit, then got down to the ground, still armed with the handgun, and suddenly stood up and charged, almost running towards the still armed officers. handgun, ”he said. “It was then that the police were forced to open fire and the adult man was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Six officers responded from the main entrance to the police operations building and five shot the suspect after ordering him to drop the gun, Jones said.

The incident comes as police use of force remains under nationwide surveillance. The actions of the Stockton officers are under investigation by agencies including the state Department of Justice and the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office, the chief said. CNN contacted these agencies and the police department.

“I haven’t seen anything like it”, says the chef

Police did not disclose the identity of the man killed. He parked his car near the police station around 8:30 p.m. local time.

“It’s too early to determine the motive; we don’t know exactly. It will certainly be part of the investigation: to find out if there is anything left about what may have motivated him. say it. ”Jones said.

“All the officers are doing well,” the department said on his Facebook page.

Jones was gloomy as he reflected on the events of the day.

“I haven’t seen anything like it. I’ve been here for almost 30 years with Stockton PD, almost 10 years as Chief of Police, and for someone to come straight into the police department like that and firing the weapon and directly charging the officers with the weapon is very unique, ”he said.

“But I will say, unfortunately, that we are seeing more cases like this, not just in our region – whether it is ambushes or assaults on police or on buildings, on operations buildings – we’ve seen an increase in that. It’s extremely concerning, and it just shows the dangers of being a police officer, ”Jones said.

Hours earlier, the department held a plaque dedication ceremony for Constable Jimmy Inn, who was fatally shot in May while responding to a domestic violence call.