Ohio Police on Tuesday shot and killed a man who was wielding knives near the Republican National Convention (RNC), officers said, days after US presidential candidate Donald Trump survive an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania.
In a separate incident on Monday, a man wearing a ski mask and carrying an “AK-47 pistol” was arrested near the site of the RNC by Capitol Police officers and Homeland Security Investigations.
The Ohio police team, which was in Wisconsin for the convention, recovered two knives from the man shot dead just blocks away from the RNC. Five members of the Columbus, Ohio, police department fired on the man, who had a knife in each hand, refused police commands and charged at an unarmed man before police fired, Milwaukee Chief Jeffrey Norman said at a news conference.
The suspect was a homeless man who was mentally distressed, reported the New York Post. Eyewitnesses heard eight shots fired and some said that the man was shot in the back as he attempted to run away from the security forces.
The shooting fueled anger from residents who questioned why out-of-state officers were in their neighborhood located about a mile from the convention site. It must be noted that currently, thousands of police officers from different states are posted in Milwaukee, providing security for the Republican National Convention.
Milwaukee residents and activists quickly converged on the site of the shooting, many of them expressing outrage about the involvement of a police department in town because of the convention. They planned a nighttime vigil.
The man was identified as Samuel Sharpe, and was a resident of a nearby “tent area” where many homeless people seek shelter. Residents of the tent encampment said expressed anger over the involvement of the Ohio police department, and said that the man would still be alive if Milwaukee police had handled the issue.
The officers who shot the suspect were wearing body cameras, and the footage will be released soon, the police department said.
Man carrying AK-47 gun arrested
The man was not carrying any valid gun permit, and authorities grew suspicious of his attire, which included a ski mask and a tactical bag. The bag contained an AK-47 pistol and a loaded magazine. The man was immediately arrested by the cops. His identity has not been revealed yet.
This comes days after an assassination attempt against Donald Trump, where a 20-year-old man fired multiple shots into the rally being addressed by the former US president. Trump escaped unharmed, with just a minor injury in his right year. However, one bystander was killed and two others were critically injured due to the shooting.
The man was shot dead by the US Secret Service within minutes of him firing his first shot.
(With inputs from AP)