Post by Barnaby Cuthbert on Jun 2, 2015 13:56:22 GMT -8
KMRLD NEWS 4: BREAKING
Police say a man was shot and killed hours ago after an incident inside the Mall at Westlake Center.
Officers say they were searching for 3 missing men who are wanted in connection with 3 recent murders. The suspect was located in the food court of the mall and shot following a confrontation with police. The shooting happened outside the mall in the area of Spline's Gifts. We're told the suspect was killed in the shooting, however witnesses reported that the police were forced to shoot the man six or seven times each. There were reports of as many as seven officers there at the time.
SPD Duty Chief Chaplan says when the officer approached the man; he began to threaten the officer with grunts and growls. The Chief says the man was carrying a severed hand -- that's when the chief says the officer, as well as backup squads from the 2nd precinct, fired at the man. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. The chief says the man's family has not been found, however he was wearing some kind of vintage military clothing.
"No family members have called us related to this man or his mental health.. or his uh, physical state," says the chief.
However, details differ in witness accounts. We heard from a man who worked in the area. He said he heard the officer yelling to get down on the ground. He then told us he saw the suspect grabbed at the officer and tried to bite him. The witness says the man appeared to be rotting and skeletal. That's when this witness tells us the officers shot and the witness says he heard nearly two-dozen shots.
Three mutilated bodies were found after the assault, one of which has yet to have been positively identified, so severe were her injuries. Two others, a mall security officer and a janitor, are being examined at the county morgue, along with the body of the assailant.
"Doing security before, it's that last minute call you have to make and I'd hate to be in the officer's shoes," says shopper Ben James. "You know it's something that is not going to rest easy for the rest of his days."
"But as long as it was inside the mall threatening other people's lives, then that's the main concern," says shopper Jeff Smith.
Brianna Cobb: "So you're saying if the officer felt threatened..."
Det. Arland Standley: "If he felt threatened or if he was armed or anything, do his job and protect citizens and all that, that's what he has to do."
Right now, the third floor of the Westlake Mall is closed as the investigation continues. The rest of the mall is is open to shoppers.
The two other men suspected of cannibalism are still at large.