A 13-year-old La Mesa girl was chased by a man with multiple knives while on her way to school Monday.
The girl, who had never seen the man before, ran into a nearby business and called 911 for help.
When officers arrived, they confronted the man in the street and eventually opened fire, striking and injuring him.
La Mesa police were dispatched around 9 a.m. to the Albertson's store on Fletcher Parkway, just east of State Route 125 and north of Interstate 8.
The teenager's mother, Tammy Brown, said her daughter was walking to school when a strange man threw a closed pocket knife at her.
The knife hit the teenager but did not hurt her, Brown told NBC 7.
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"She said she had never seen him before," Brown said. "When she ran away, she fell. She got up and kept running."
[Gallery] Officer Shot Man Who Chased Girl With Knives: La Mesa PD
The girl told her mother she ran into the Subway restaurant. From there, she called for help.
When police arrived, officers confronted the suspect in the middle of the street.
The man came at an officer with a knife raised above his head, according to Capt. Ray Sweeney with La Mesa Police Department.
An officer opened fire, striking the man once in the arm and once in the abdomen.
The officer was placed on paid administrative leave per department protocol, Sweeney said.
Sweeney said the man was armed with two machete-type knives.
The California Highway Patrol blocked off the Amaya exit from State Route 125. The ramp was reopened by 3 p.m.
As of 1:45 p.m., the intersection was reopened to traffic with Fletcher Parkway shut down west of Amaya Drive.
The Subway employee told NBC 7 off camera that she was alone in the store when the girl ran in crying and asked her to call 911. The employee said she dialed the phone and gave the phone to the girl.
There were no customers inside the store at the time.
The teenager is a student at Parkway Middle School which is located at Park Plaza Drive, less than a mile north of the Albertsons store.
Principal Mary Beason sent a message to parents alerting them to this morning's incident.
"We are urging our students to be vigilant and aware of their surroundings as they walk to school and to walk with a parent and/or in a group of two or more whenever possible," said David Feliciano, Assistant Superintendent with the La Mesa-Spring Valley Schools.
No other information was available.
Refresh this page for updates on this developing story. Details may change as information is released. La Mesa police initially said the girl ran into a dental office for help. They have since corrected that information.
