SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — A man was shot and killed by police after officials say he pulled out a gun during a foot pursuit that started as a traffic stop in Shelby Township on Tuesday.
Watch Ruta Ulcinaite's video report:
The shooting happened around 3:15 p.m. outside The Hot Spot Coffee Company on Van Dyke Avenue near 22 Mile Road.
According to police, officers were conducting a traffic stop and the suspect, a 41-year-old man from Troy, got out of the car and ran. He was the only person inside the vehicle.
A Shelby Township police officer chased the suspect behind businesses in the area. According to police, the officer gave the suspect verbal commands to stop running before using a Taser. The suspect continued to flee and pulled out a gun. The officer then told him to drop the weapon before shooting him.
Watch Chopper 7 video of the scene below:
Police have not yet said if the suspect fired any shots. However, a man who works in the area says he saw the suspect and the officer exchange gunfire.
"He ran away from the van and he turned back and he fired two shots at the cop and the cop ducked for cover," Devin Walsh, who works at a nearby auto shop, said.
The man was taken to the hospital, where he died. His identity is being withheld at this time, police said.
No one else was hurt.
Resident say they're shocked something like this could happen in their quiet, quaint neighborhood.
“It’s bizarre that something like this would ever happen here. You don’t think of Shelby Township as a place that this would happen," resident Mackenzie McNutt said.
The suspect's weapon was recovered.
The officer was placed on administrative leave, which is standard protocol. The Macomb County Sheriff's Office will be investigating the incident.
