Huntington Beach, CA (AP) —Police officers shot and killed an armed man in the sand in front of dozens of horrifying witnesses gathered at Huntington Beach for the US Open of Surfing.
Police officers who responded to reports of a man with a gun contacted him on Saturday afternoon and fired when he refused to comply with many orders, said Jennifer Carrie, a city police spokesman. Said in a statement.
The man was taken to the hospital where he was sentenced to death. He has not been identified.
She said a gun was found on the scene.
Witnesses said some shots rang south of the pier, near the bike and pedestrian walkways, after the surfing competition was over that day. In one witness video, a man rolled on the sand, appeared to reach for an object before police officers fired several times, and people beat him with screams and screams.
“We started listening to pop, pop, pop,” Hector Tober said. I told the Orange County Register. “I thought it was fireworks, but that was the number of rounds.”
Police officers’ body cameras were activated during the shooting, footage was inspected by Orange County Sheriff’s Office investigators, and officials said they would work with Huntington Beach police to investigate the shooting.