Body camera video of a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy captured the moments leading up to a fatal January shooting at a Southern California mall.
The shooting occurred before midnight on January 11 outside a Macy’s store in Valencia City Center Westfield.
Officers responded, around 11 p.m., to a search report at the mall in the 24000 block of Valencia Boulevard. The mall was closed at the time.
Deputies responded to the mall on Wednesday evening after reporting a trespass.
A 911 caller told authorities the man refused to leave and threatened mall employees.
“He basically wants to start a fight every time we approach him to try and get him to go away,” the caller said. “He just says the only way for me to get out of here is to put one of you in a chokehold and stuff.”
The man was later identified as Christopher Lee Mercurio, 50.
Security camera video showed Mercurio, seated at the entrance to a mall, approaching an arriving officer in a van. The officer informed Mercurio of the information provided to authorities during the 911 call, the sheriff’s department said.
Mercury replied that he would kill anyone who tried to get him to leave, the agency said. He can be heard saying to the officer, “I’ll f—-the c—-.
The officer can be heard repeatedly asking Mercurio to step back as he walked towards her. He then punched her in the face and head, the sheriff’s department said.
Authorities are investigating the shooting death by police of a stabbing suspect who officers say threatened him with a large knife near Los Angeles last week.
The officer can be heard reporting that she is in a confrontation. As the man walks on, he can be heard repeatedly telling her that she will shoot if he gets close.
After the gunshots, Mercurio went back to the sleeping bags at the entrance to the tent and collapsed. He was taken to hospital and later died.
Video of the full body camera was posted on the Sheriff’s Department’s YouTube page.
The California Department of Justice is investigating the shooting.
This story first appeared on Telemundo 52’s sister station NBCLA. Click on here to read this story in English.