The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office released new details on Thursday into the fatal police shooting of a man armed with two knives inside a grocery store last week.
The incident occurred at 2:39 p.m. on Oct. 20 in the 5100 block of Hollister Avenue where two sheriff’s deputies responded to a call of an assault with a deadly weapon. The arriving deputies learned that a man had attacked a dog and stabbed the dog owner before fleeing inside a Ralphs grocery store, where he barricaded himself inside a public bathroom, according to a department statement on the shooting.
The department identified the suspect as 34-year-old Abdou Rhamn Nyan of Connecticut.
The sheriff’s deputies, Sgt. Eric Delgadillo and Deputy Anthony Muneton, entered the store and made their way to the back where the restroom was located. Delgadillo and Muneton attempted to negotiate with Nyan in an effort to deescalate the situation, according to the sheriff’s department.
Because the deputies believed he still had the knives with him in the restroom, they put display racks in front of the door in an effort to temporarily contain him and protect themselves, the department statement said.
“Moments later, Nyan suddenly opened the door, pushed through the barricade, and charged toward the deputies clutching a metal trashcan as a barrier while holding a knife in each hand,” the statement read. “Deputies were positioned less than ten feet away in the narrow alcove outside the restroom and issued verbal commands.”
The department said a third deputy attempted to use a taser, while Delgadillo and Muneton fired six rounds at Nyan. After shooting him, the deputies secured the knives and began lifesaving measures.
Paramedics pronounced Nyan dead at the scene. No deputies were injured in the shooting. The stabbing victim was treated at a hospital and released. The victim’s dog was unharmed.
The sheriff’s office said the two deputies remain on administrative leave and the shooting remains under investigation. The department said it will hand over the results of the investigation to the the Santa Barbara County district attorney’s office for review.
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