By Joanna Putman
Police1
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Columbus Division of Police has released body camera footage showing a man charging at officers with edged weapons, leading to a fatal OIS, WBNS reported.
Columbus Police Assistant Chief LaShanna Potts stated that officers had been called to the suspect’s residence three times in the five hours prior to the shooting, according to the report.
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The first call involved a report of a person with an “edged weapon” who was bleeding. Police found the man holding the weapon and called for the Mobile Crisis Response (MCR) Uni. The man refused to engage with the officers, and the scene was cleared, according to the report.
Later that evening, police were called back after receiving reports that the man was threatening others inside the home. MCR was dispatched again and spoke with the man by phone, but he declined further assistance, according to the report. Officers cleared the scene a second time.
At 1:30 a.m., dispatchers received another call regarding the man, who was reportedly holding several “edged weapons.” Officers encountered him near a police substation.
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Body camera footage shows the man walking in the direction of the officers while holding an object in each hand. Multiple officers can be heard repeatedly instructing the man to drop the weapons.
Instead, the man raised the weapons, turning toward officers and advancing more quickly toward them. Multiple officers fired shots, and one officer deployed a TASER simultaneously.
Officers quickly moved to provide aid after the shooting, securing a meat cleaver and kicking away a second knife, according to the report. He was pronounced dead shrotly after. The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is conducting an investigation into the incident.
