Two CMPD officers who responded to a call about an armed man shot and killed the man after he refused to drop the gun, the department announced late Wednesday.
The shooting happened shortly after 9:10 p.m. in the 1900 block of Prospect Drive in northeast Charlotte, near the intersection of Interstate 85 and W. Sugar Creek Road.
CMPD identified the dead man as 29-year old Rueben Galindo.
The officers involved were identified as Courtney Suggs, who has been employed by CMPD since December 2014, and David Guerra, who joined the department in April 2013. Both are assigned to the North Tryon Dividion.
According to a CMPD statement sent to local media, the officers went to the scene after the man called police to say he had a gun. The officers found the man outside an apartment complex, still armed.
“Officers gave multiple commands to the man to drop the weapon. The man refused to drop the weapon and the officers perceived an imminent deadly threat. The officers subsequently fired their weapon striking the man,” the statement read.
Paramedics were called, and the man was pronounced dead at the scene. Detectives recovered the firearm the man was holding at the time of the shooting, CMPD said.
Chief Kerr Putney said the man was Hispanic and that there was a language barrier when the man called police, according to the Charlotte Observer.
Both officers involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave while the department conducts an investigation, which is standard procedure for an officer-involved shooting.
Mayor Jennifer Roberts posted a tweet late Wednesday saying she and Chief Kerr Putney are working to ensure a “full and transparent” investigation. She also expressed concern for the family of the man who was killed.
Anyone who witnessed the shooting or has information is asked to call 704-432-TIPS and speak to a homicide detective, or call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600, or visit the Crime Stoppers website at http://charlottecrimestoppers.com.
Editor’s Note: This article was updated to reflect the names of the man who was killed and the names of the CMPD officers involved in the shooting.
