Man Killed in 'Barrage' of Police Gunfire
By ERIC S. PAGE
Updated 10:47 AM PST, Wed, Apr 1, 2009
A corpse, a bloody street and a law-enforcement investigation are left in the wake of gunfire in an East County intersection.
The shooting took place around noon near Avocado Boulevard and Fuerte Drive, not far from Mount Helix.
El Cajon police said they got a call to 911 shortly before noon about a man in his mid-20s running down the street south on Avocado Boulevard carrying what witnesses described as a large Bowie knife.
The first officers to arrived said they ordered the man, who has not been identified, to stop and drop the knife. Instead, he turned and approached them, police said, so they shot him several times with beanbags from a shotgun, which didn't seen to affect the man, who ran south on Avocado.
Additional officers arrived and the police surrounded him at Avocado and Fuerte. Police said he refused to drop weapon and charged one of the them, so they opened fire -- at least six shots -- and killed him.
"It was a barrage of gunfire," said a man who identified himself as Bob who works neary at Helix Auto Care. "I'd say 12 to 15 shots. I thought, 'Good Lord, what are they doing out here?' "
Attempts to save the man's life proved futile. Paramedics were seen performing CPR, but broke off their efforts and called off an air ambulance that was en route.
There are no other victims known to have been connected to the case.
First Published: Mar 27, 2009 12:45 PM PST
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