Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said detectives shot and killed a man who they said opened fire on them as they served a search warrant in Compton early Thursday morning.
“When they attempted to serve the search warrant, they came under fire immediately from the suspect who was the subject of the search warrant,” Sheriff Alex Villanueva told reporters at a news briefing.
He said the man, whom he did not identify, was killed during “multiple exchanges of gunfire” and after he tried to set fire to the garage to “get rid of the evidence.” No deputies were injured.
The shooting occurred about 6 a.m. in the 500 block of South Bradfield Avenue in Compton, he said. Detectives from the department’s Operation Safe Streets Bureau were serving the warrant, though it’s unclear what it was for. The Sheriff’s Department said a weapon was recovered from the scene.
The incident marks the second fatal shooting by sheriff’s deputies in less than two weeks.
Dijon Kizzee, whose death has sparked days of protests, was killed Aug. 31 during a struggle with deputies after they stopped him for allegedly riding a bicycle in violation of vehicle codes. An attorney for Kizzee’s family said he was shot at 15 times as he ran away. Sheriff’s officials said deputies fired after Kizzee “made a motion toward” a gun that fell to the ground from a jacket he dropped. The investigation is ongoing, officials said.
