A 21-year-old security guard has been shot dead by police in Los Angeles after 'producing a handgun' and fleeing the scene when ap...
A 21-year-old security guard has been shot dead by police in Los Angeles after 'producing a handgun' and fleeing the scene when approached by officers.
Andres Guardado was stationed outside the autobody shop where he worked in Gardena, in LA's South Bay Region, guarding against graffiti taggers on Thursday evening.
He allegedly spotted officers patrolling the area on foot, at which point he produced a hand gun.
Sheriffs approached him and are believed to have 'pulled their guns', scaring Gaurdado who attempted to flee southbound between two businesses.
Officers began chasing him on foot before a deputy fired a gun, striking and killing Guardado in his upper torso at around 6pm.
Andres Guardado (pictured above in a family photo) was shot and killed at around 6pm on Thursday evening
Officers remained at the scene last night as dozens of Guardado's friends and families demanded answers over the fatal shooting
Andrew Heaney, the autobody shop owner, said: 'We had a security guard that was out front, because we had just had certain issues with people tagging and stuff like that.
'The police came up, and they pulled their guns on him and he ran because he was scared, and they shot and killed him.
'He’s got a clean background and everything. There’s no reason,' Heaney added.
A sheriff's department spokesperson said that when deputies first saw Guardado he 'produced a handgun' before fleeing.
'Deputies engaged in a short foot pursuit between the two businesses, at some point the deputies contacted the suspect and that’s when the deputy-involved shooting occurred', the spokesperson added.
Guardado, who was Hispanic, was not believed to be wearing a security guard uniform at the time deputies spotted him, and a gun was later recovered at the scene.
Some family and friends were spotted filming the officers on their phones as tensions escalated late last night
The dead man's devastated friends and family were spotted facing off with deputies last night as they demanded answers, in what local media described as a 'very tense situation'.
Several police vehicles with flashing sirens remained at the 400 block of Redondo Beach Boulevard late into the night.
There is conflicting information over Guardado's age, with some local news outlets describing him as just 18 years old.
The LA Country Fire Department said paramedics were called to the scene where the man was pronounced dead, CBSLocal reported.
Guardado's death is the second fatal shooting involved an LAPD deputy in just two days.
On Wednesday officers shot and killed Terron Jammal Boome, identified as the half-brother of Robert Fuller, who was found hanging last week from a tree in Palmdale.
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