An armed man was shot and killed by Orlando police early Saturday morning after he allegedly refused to drop an AR-15 rifle.
Shortly after 2:40 a.m. on Saturday, March 1, Orlando Police Department officers responded to the 200 block of E Colonial Drive in Orlando in reference to a suspicious man who was reportedly pounding on a victim’s door while armed with the rifle, according to OPD.
The police department stated that the incident location consisted of studio workspace apartments that were “not intended for living purposes.” When officers arrived at one of the apartments, they made contact with the victim.
As the officers proceeded down the hallway, they spotted an open door. The male suspect, identified by police as a 62-year-old man, emerged through the door while carrying an “AR-15-style rifle.”
OPD stated that officers gave the suspect multiple commands to “drop the weapon.” However, he allegedly disobeyed those commands, and he was shot by the officers as a result.
The officers immediately attempted life-saving measures, but the suspect was pronounced deceased at a local hospital.
According to police, the suspect had a “non-violent criminal history from another state.”
A total of three officers were involved in the shooting, and they have been placed on paid administrative leave. OPD stated that their body-worn cameras were on during the incident.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will conduct an independent review of the incident, and those results will then be turned over to the State Attorney’s Office. In addition, OPD will conduct its own internal investigation.
“This is all the information we are able to release at this time,” said OPD in a media release on Saturday morning.