SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — An investigation is underway after a man was mortally wounded by gunfire during an officer-involved shooting in San Diego's La Mesa area Sunday afternoon.
The fatal shooting happened around 4:13 p.m. outside of a condominium complex in the 8000 block of University Avenue.
According to the San Diego Police Department, two La Mesa police officers stopped in a parking lot because they recognized a white man with a felony warrant standing next to a vehicle.
When they approached him, the man allegedly pulled out a handgun and aimed it at an officer who was standing outside of the cruiser.
SDPD says the suspect tried to fire at the officer multiple times but the firearm malfunctioned and he ran through the parking lot. In response, one officer fired his weapon multiple times at the suspect as he fled.
As the man ran toward University Avenue, police say he tried to fix the malfunction in his gun and an officer fired his gun, striking the suspect in the upper body multiple times.
Authorities called paramedics and tried to render aid to the man, but he was pronounced dead at the scene shortly after. San
Lt. Shebloski says during the shooting, a stray bullet hit a nearby car: "That round impacted what appears to be a window. We have not processed that vehicle for evidence but we do know that the person inside the vehicle, thankfully, was not hit by a round."
Neighbors, who didn't want to appear on camera, told 10News this isn't the first time they have heard gunfire in the area.
The name of the suspect has not been released to the public yet pending notification of kin and an autopsy by the San Diego County Medical Examiner. Officials believe he was 41 years old.
The police department says the officer involved in the shooting has been employed by the La Mesa Police Department for about six years. He is currently assigned as a Master Patrol Officer in La Mesa and has been placed on paid leave per the La Mesa Police Department’s standard protocol following an officer-involved shooting incident. The second officer present did not fire his weapon.
"There is no threat to community safety," the department wrote on its Twitter page.
Police working a shooting 8000 University. Stay clear of the area. There is no threat to community safety. https://t.co/XJWdTURGlw
— La Mesa PD (@LaMesaPD) August 6, 2023
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Homicide Unit at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-8477.
