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BLUFFDALE — A Bluffdale police officer shot and killed a man Saturday after police say he confronted them with some kind of weapon.
About 11:45 a.m., police responded to a report of an aggravated assault at the Beacon Hill Apartment complex, 15130 S. Beacon Point Lane. A 17-year-old boy told officers a man had choked him and marks were visible on the teen's neck, according to a statement from a Saratoga Springs spokeswoman AnnElise Harrison. That city's police department also covers Bluffdale.
He told them that the 31-year-old man had left before police arrived. But police say the man returned about 12:45 p.m.
"The suspect confronted the officers with a weapon in his hand. Less lethal methods were attempted without success and the suspect continued to confront officers with the weapon," Harrison said. "One officer fired his handgun at the suspect. After the shots were fired, officers requested medical assistance and initiated CPR."
Harrison later confirmed that the man died. His name has not yet been released.
The teen told KSL that he knew the man who attacked him. The man was his neighbor and they used to work out together. Easton Lyons said the neighbor put both of his hands around his neck as Lyons was talking to a friend through his apartment window.
"He was getting all crazy with me and saying, 'Don't knock on that window,' but I was like, 'What are you gonna do about it?' Then he just choked me out," Lyons said.
"I passed out when he was choking me. I think that scared him or something. I woke up and he was still choking me when I woke up," he said.
The teen said those actions were uncharacteristic for the man.
"This guy was like a whole different guy. I didn't know him like that. It was crazy," Lyons said.
When the man returned and confronted the officers, police first deployed a Taser but said that did not work. Cellphone video then captured two shots that were fired right after.
"The bigger question is why he did what he did to begin with," said Saratoga Springs Police Chief Andrew Burton. "It's hard to know."
Police did not say what kind of weapon the man had or what prompted the confrontation.
"I'd just emphasize that the suspect that was shot by officers does have a criminal history, including weapons violations," Burton said.
The Salt Lake County Officer Involved Critical Incident Task Force was called to the scene to conduct an investigation of the police shooting.
