SAN ANTONIO – Four San Antonio police officers fatally shot an armed man outside South Park Mall Wednesday morning, officials confirmed.
An officer assigned with inspecting big rigs pulled over the driver of an 18-wheeler near Zarzamora and Southwest Military Drive around 11:30 a.m., according to San Antonio Police Chief William McManus.
The driver, a man in his 20s, fled from officers on foot and ran into South Park Mall before he was kicked off the property by security, McManus said.
Officers encountered the man and four officers opened fire on him in the parking lot, killing him. The four officers were veterans ranging from 10 years of experience to 26 years of experience, McManus said.
The chief confirmed the man had a gun in his possession. McManus stressed that details about the incident may change when investigators review the officers’ body camera footage.
Witnesses told a KSAT reporter on the scene that they saw a man with a handgun exit the mall and point the gun at a police officer. The witnesses said officers then shot the man.
Parts of the mall’s parking lot were closed off while police investigate the incident. The scene was cleared around 2:30 p.m.
Under a newly changed police department policy, the department will release footage of the fatal police shooting within 60 days of the incident.
“We’re going to release it as soon as we can get it together, but it will be within 60 days,” McManus said at the scene.