Sunnyvale DPS Lieutenant, Suspect He Fatally Shot Identified

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA — The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety has identified a man fatally shot by one of its law enforcement officers who responded to a stabbing Tuesday, Oct. 31. The man shot was identified Wednesday as Jesus Birelas-Contreras, 25, and the officer who fired the fatal shot was identified as Lt. Emmett Larkin, Sunnyvale DPS officials said in a statement.

A police K-9 fatally injured in the incident was identified as Jax.

According to the Sunnyvale DPS statement Wednesday, Sunnyvale officers responded to a report of a stabbing at about 1 p.m. Tuesday in the 500 block of E. Weddell Ave. There, they found a 25-year-old woman suffering a stab wound to her abdomen.

The woman told officers Birelas-Contreras was her boyfriend and that he'd stabbed her during an argument inside the residence.

Officers made contact with Birelas-Contreras, who was still inside the residence, but he was allegedly uncooperative. They tried negotiating with him, according to the statement, then attempted to detain him through the use of Jax, the police dog.

"The suspect stabbed the canine with a knife," the statement continued.

Meanwhile, officers were reportedly continuing their attempts to negotiate with Birelas-Contreras when he allegedly threw a knife at them — at which time Larkin fired his weapon, striking Birelas-Contreras.

Officers began life-saving efforts on Birelas-Contreras, according to the statement, until he was taken to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries.

• Sunnyvale Officer-Involved Shooting: Suspect, Police Dog Dead
  

K-9 Jax was taken to an emergency veterinary hospital, where he died from his injuries. His handler, Stephen Eckford, a 7-year law enforcement veteran, was not injured in the incident.

Larkin, a 19-year veteran of law enforcement, was placed on routine paid administrative leave following the officer-involving shooting.

The shooting remains under investigation in coordination with the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office investigation bureau, the statement concluded.