SFO Shooting Suspect Was Carrying Replica Guns: District Attorney

SAN FRANCISCO — The California Attorney General is investigating Thursday’s SFO shooting after new details are emerging that the suspect was armed with an airsoft-type replica pistol, the attorney general’s office announced Friday.

A California Assembly bill requires the Department of Justice to investigate any incident in which law enforcement kills a civilian not in possession of a deadly weapon, California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a news release.

On Friday, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe told the San Francisco Chronicle that the suspect, whose name has not been released, was carrying two airsoft guns without orange tips, which helps differentiate them from real guns. On Thursday, the San Francisco Police Department said that officers shot the man after he ignored their orders and continued to advance toward them.

SFPD spokesperson Officer Grace Gatpandan said that the man “appeared to be armed with a handgun,” but said that the incident was under investigation when asked if the weapons were replicas. SFPD also said that they will hold a town hall about the shooting within 10 days.

District Attorney Wagstaffe also told ABC7 that the suspect was carrying a knife, and that the suspect’s two guns looked real in photos he saw.

Thursday’s shooting resulted in the injury of a bystander, who was transported to a nearby hospital with what authorities said were non-life-threatening injuries. It also resulted in in the temporary closure of the airport BART station and portions of the International Terminal, and delays in security procedures. Airport and BART authorities said everything returned to normal by about 10 a.m.

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Police Kill Gunman At SFO, Bystander Injured By Bullet