Police: Man killed by officer pointed vaping device

A man pulled a vape smoking device from his pocket and pointed it at police before one officer fatally shot him and another discharged a Taser, police in El Cajon, California, said Wednesday.

Police identified him as Alfred Okwera Olango, 38, of El Cajon.

His death set off demonstrations in the San Diego suburb as activists demanded that authorities release video of the shooting. They also want a federal probe into Olango's death.

Police have released little information except for a still photograph showing Olango in what authorities described as a "shooting stance," facing off with the two officers in a parking lot.

By Wednesday evening, police identified the object as a the vaping device. The identity of one of the officers was revealed as Richard Gonsalves, a 21-year veteran of the force.

In a news conference, Mayor Bill Wells did not identify the second officer, except to say he was also a 21-year veteran of the force.

Wells said he understood the frustration of demonstrators, who blocked a freeway exit for a period of time on Wednesday.

The protests were "angry and loud" but peaceful, he said.

"It's their First Amendment right," he said. "I understand that they don't feel heard. I understand that they're wanting more information."

Wells said he had seen the video and that it pained him. But he called for patience as the investigation runs its course.

"I saw a man who was distraught, a man who was acting in ways that looked like he was in great pain, and I saw him get gunned down and killed and it broke my heart," he said. "If it was my son, I would be devastated."

Not acting like himself

On Tuesday afternoon, El Cajon police responded to a 911 call reporting an African-American man in his 30s who was behaving "erratically" behind a restaurant at the Broadway Village Shopping Center, Lt. Rob Ransweiler said.

According to the call, the man was "not acting like himself" and had been walking in traffic, endangering himself and motorists, Davis said.

The woman calling 911 claimed to be the man's sister and told the dispatcher that he was mentally ill and unarmed, Davis said. Investigators have not been able to confirm whether the caller was the man's sister, he said.

"We tried to get her to talk to us. As you can understand, she was upset. She was not cooperating with us," the chief said, asking the woman to come forward to speak with investigators.

The investigation just started, but based on the video voluntarily provided by a witness, the subject did NOT have his hands up in the air

— El Cajon Police (@elcajonpolice) September 28, 2016

Officers did not respond to the first 911 call for 50 minutes because "it did take us that long to clear officers to get out there," Davis said.

Once they arrived, the man kept his hands concealed in his pockets while pacing back and forth. As a second officer prepared a Taser, the man "rapidly drew an object," placed both hands on it "like you would be holding a firearm."

One officer fired his gun at the man, while a second officer discharged his Taser, he said. Both are on three-day administrative leave.

The El Cajon Police Department's homicide unit will investigate the shooting, and the district attorney's office will review it, Davis said. Asked if he should consult an outside agency to investigate the incident, the police chief said, "I trust my investigators. I trust the system. I trust the protocol, the district attorney's office and the FBI."

No trust in prosecutors to investigate police

Such assurances have done little assure the community.

The Rev. Shane Harris, president of the San Diego chapter of the National Action Network, called releasing the photo "cowardly." Harris, who said he had spoken to the dead man's family, was one of several speakers addressing reporters in front of the El Cajon Police Department.

In a photo from police, officers engage a man they say was acting "erratically."

"We do not trust local prosecutors to investigate local police," he said, explaining the family's desire for a federal investigation.

Harris questioned how police could release such a seemingly damning photo while purporting to pursue all the facts and refusing to release video from witnesses and those at a nearby restaurant.

Added Bishop Cornelius Bowser of Charity Apostolic Church, "We don't want to see a still picture of him pointing something that is not gun. ... The best way to move forward right now is through transparency."

Citing a countywide protocol pertaining to officer-involved shootings, Police Chief Jeff Davis said Tuesday he was merely following guidelines in not making the video public. His department released the photo to counter "disinformation," he said.

What we know, and what we don't

"This (video) is considered evidence, and until it is deemed otherwise, it will be under the control of the district attorney's office," he said.

'They killed my brother'

 

Police: Man was shot by police after acting erratically 

In the aftermath of the shooting and the man's death, Rumbie Mubaiwa began filming on Facebook Live.

In the video, a distraught woman says she called 911 to get help for the man she says is her brother. She describes him as "sick."

Several police are on the scene. One interviews a witness and two put up yellow police tape. Several officers can be seen congregating in the background as the sister sits on a rock wailing.

"You guys killed my brother in front of me," she cries, as Mubaiwa records the scene. "Why couldn't you guys Tase him? Why? Why? Why? Why?"

Police have not confirmed whether the woman in the Facebook Live footage is the man's sister. Christoper Rice-Wilson, the director of civic engagement for Alliance San Diego, told reporters Wednesday that family members requested privacy while they grieve and would make statements at some point in the future.

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com