Shooting suspect dies in police custody after being subdued with Taser in Barstow
A man died at a hospital about an hour after police subdued him with a Taser after he allegedly fired gunshots at a Barstow apartment complex over the weekend, authorities said.
The encounter took place just after 12:30 p.m. Sunday in the 400 block of North 3rd Avenue, where police were summoned to a report of gunfire, according to the Barstow Police Department.
"The reporting party in a neighboring apartment advised they heard gunshots and bullets had made entry into their apartment," police said in a written statement.
Officers found the front door of the suspect's apartment open when they arrived and went inside to make a "safety sweep," according to the statement.
They encountered the 34-year-old suspect in a bedroom, holding a handgun, police said.
"Officers gave the suspect commands to drop the handgun, but he did not comply," the statement said. "After several commands that were ignored, an officer Tased the suspect, and he dropped the handgun. Additional officers took the suspect into custody and secured the handgun."
Officials saw no visible injuries to the suspect, but he soon became unresponsive, police said.
He was taken to a local hospital, where he went into cardiac arrest, officials said. He died at about 1:40 p.m.
The identity of the man was not released pending notification of family.
More: Woman arrives home amid burglary in Barstow; 3 suspects jailed
No injuries were reported in connection with the original shooting that drew the police response.
Simultaneous investigations into the death were being carried out by the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department Specialized Investigations Division, as well as the Barstow Police Department's Internal Affairs Division, police said.
A cause of death will be determined through an autopsy.
More: Man accused of kidnapping, attempted murder of ex-girlfriend in Barstow
Anyone with information was asked to contact sheriff's Detective Candelario Sahagun at (909) 890-4904, or by email at csahagun@sbcsd.org, or Barstow police Sgt. Matthew Helms at (760) 256-2211, or by email at mhelms@barstowca.org.
Information may also be provided anonymously to the We-Tip hotline at (800) 782-7463.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Shooting suspect dies after police subdue him with Taser in Barstow
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