TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Two Toledo Police officers are on paid-administrative leave, due to protocol, following the deadly shooting of a robbery suspect in north Toledo on Friday.
The two officers have been identified as SWAT officers Kenneth Krabill and Ryan Babcock.
To dispel a host of rumors that had surrounded the shooting, city leaders decided to show the unredacted video of the incident captured by police dash cameras to members of the media.
Police confirmed that Lamar C. Richardson Jr., 25, a robbery suspect, was killed in the shooting and that Richardson was armed.
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz and Toledo Police Chief George Kral warned viewers what they were going to see was disturbing.
"Maybe other cities around the country can learn from some of the things we did on Friday night to ease tensions and prevent an already bad situation from getting worse," said the Mayor.
The Mayor added that the city must work to heal and is asking city and community leaders to find solutions together.
The video shows Richardson on a bike, then fleeing on foot behind a building as police pursue him. One officer engaged in a foot pursuit while the other pursued in the cruiser.
"We're chasing a guy with a gun, who could possibly have a gun. Every time we chase someone with a gun, they run, they throw it," Kral said.
Kral pointed out that Richardson is seen pulling a gun out of his waistband.
"He has that gun, he's not running," Kral said as the video rolled. "He's not trying to get away. He's facing us."
"The officers see the gun, they know he's had a gun in four different robberies"
A series of shots are heard and the video then shows Richardson falling to the ground.
Richardson was a suspect in four carryout robberies, according to TPD Lt. Kevan Toney, the department's public information officer.
A police presence and an angry crowd had gathered earlier at East Hudson Street near Warsaw Street in Toledo after the report of an officer-involved shooting there.
"We were out there, these officers were out there, conducting surveillance on a robbery suspect," said Toney.
Richardson was wanted on a felony warrant for theft of a motor vehicle and four other warrants.
According to police, the incident began Friday when a vehicle was stolen from the east side and was spotted by field operation crews. A pursuit began and ended when, after losing Richardson in the pursuit briefly, they spotted him on a bike.
They tried to stop him on the bike and Richardson then took out a firearm, which is when shots were fired, police said.
It's unknown if shots were fired by Richardson. A gun was recovered from the suspect.
"Update: Officer-Involved shooting investigation is ongoing & will take time. We will provide updates as we get them. The person shot is 25 years of age, not a juvenile. He did have a firearm. PLEASE, be weary of misinformation," a tweet from TPD read Friday night.
Many people on social media were under the impression that the deceased was a teenager.
Regardless of knowing the suspect's age or not, people in the neighborhood were upset by the shooting, which was the second officer-involved shooting to occur in Toledo in a week.
"My son seen that and my son seen everything. You think my son wasn't traumatized from this?" one neighborhood resident said.
"We were out there, these officers were out there, conducting surveillance on a robbery suspect. When we have more information we'll provide it to you," Lt. Kevan Toney, TPD public information officer, said.
Toney said he understands people are upset and the line of police present was there to both protect the crime scene and to also allow people to vent. He cautioned against speculating and sharing misinformation.
The sharing of the video came directly after the mayor held a late-night press conference with a diverse group of Toledo community leaders behind him at One Government Center.
Kapszukiewicz discussed the reasoning behind wanting to show the video in its entirety - to be transparent and dispel lingering rumors.
"There were rumors he was 16... there were rumors he was on his knees ... there were rumors he was running away. Those rumors can be dismissed," the mayor said.
He also used the moment to stress the importance government officials and law enforcement has in being open and transparent.
"I know the environment we are living in this country. I think it's fair to say that all of us will view the video through the lens of our own life experiences. I think as we move forward, we will all benefit by sharing information, by being transparent," Kapszukiewicz said.
When asked about the occurrence of two officer-involved shootings in the same week, Toney acknowledged that the timing is unusual, but that such shootings do happen in a city of this size.
"On average over the past five years ... we're a large urban city and from time to time, you'll have officer-involved shootings.
"Anytime anyone is shot, it's concerning. Police officers don't want to shoot anyone. It's one of the hardest things an officer faces."
