An officer with the US Marshals Arizona WANTED Violent Offender Task Force fatally shot a man in Phoenix on Wednesday night.
It began with a shoplifting call at a Walmart in Mesa where a loss-prevention officer reported seeing a man steal power tools and confronted the man, who pulled out a knife, according to a news release from the US Marshals Service.
Bystanders called 911 and a witness followed the man, at one point colliding with his vehicle near Broadway and Higley roads, the news release said.
A detective attempted to pull over the man, but he did not stop and was running stop signs and hitting curbs before he drove onto US 60 westbound. A Mesa police air unit followed him into Phoenix, the US Marshals Service said.
The man drove into downtown Phoenix and stopped near Jefferson and 24th streets, near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, where an officer with the US Marshals Arizona WANTED Violent Offender Task Force began giving commands.
The man’s vehicle “began to spin its tires and pushed the officer’s vehicle” while the officer was standing near the vehicle’s rear, at which point the officer shot the man, the US Marshals Service said.
The man, whom officials did not identify, was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured, the US Marshals Service said. The Arizona Department of Public Safety is investigating…Â AZ Central