There are times when real life is truly stranger than fiction. Citizens of Richmond, Virginia experienced one of those times on Tuesday morning.
Around 10 a.m., police began receiving reports that a man was running around outside of the 3rd Street Diner, wielding a knife and an ax. To make things even more bizarre, the man was wearing nothing but combat boots and a kilt.
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According to Police Chief Alfred Durham, the officers who encountered the man attempted to de-escalate the situation. They first used a Taser, but the ax-carrying man didn’t slow down.
When the Taser didn’t prove to be effective, the two officers fired their guns and stopped the man.
Tiffany McCoy was waiting tables at the nearby diner when the incident occurred. She claims that the man went after the police with his weapons, forcing them to use their guns.
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“It happened so quick,” McCoy said in a statement. “He was tased. It didn’t fase him. He got within a few feet. The had no other option.”
Chief Durham said that the officers shot the man in the body and that he was pronounced dead at 10:31 a.m. at a local hospital.
“I’ve never really witnessed anything like that,” said McCoy.
Investigators are reportedly reviewing the cameras that were worn on the officers to be sure that the shooting was necessary. Police have stated that they will release the man’s name once he has been identified and his relatives have been notified.
