Armed man killed by Tempe Police after reports of a car break in, department says
TEMPE, Ariz. - A man is dead after being shot by a Tempe Police officer Monday afternoon, the department says.
Officers responded to the area just before 2 p.m. near Baseline and Rural Roads for several reports of a man trying to break into a car in a shopping center parking lot, says Tempe Police Sgt. Ryan Cook.
They found the suspect but lost sight of him. Shortly after, the man was spotted at the bottom of a stairwell where he reportedly pulled a handgun out of a backpack.
An officer shot the suspect and a K-9 officer went down to retrieve the suspect to bring him back up the stairs for officers to give aid to the man.
The man was taken to the hospital where he died. He was identified as 45-year-old John Andreyo.
No more information is available.
Witnesses recall what they saw
"I heard there was a shooting and saw someone get pulled out of a stretcher and that's about it," said witness Lizzy Nelson.
It was a scary sight for employees working in the strip mall at the time of the shooting.
"From what I've seen, just a bunch of cops like driving through super fast and going through the speed bumps, bunch of motorcycle cops kind of went over through the exits and sheltered the area off with caution tape," said Zachary Fry.
Nelson said she saw dozens of police cruisers.
"I was working and I saw like 29 cop cars pull up over there," she said. "A couple of other employees were standing outside, and a cop came by us and said, 'Get far away or go back inside you can't really be standing around outside.'"
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