By Keith Epps
The Free Lance-Star
KING GEORGE, Va.— A 65-year-old man was shot and killed late Saturday by a King George deputy after he approached police with a knife as they tried to take him into custody, police said.
King George Sheriiff’s spokeswoman Kecia Wharton said the Sheriff’s Office was called to the 10000 block of Tinsbloom Mill Lane about 10:40 p.m. for a disturbance involving the shooting victim, who was reportedly intoxicated. It was not immediately clear what the disturbance was about.
Wharton said that when deputies arrived, the man barricaded himself in a bedroom in the residence. Sheriff’s Office personnel and state police spent about an hour trying to talk the man into giving himself up.
Finally, officers decided to go in after the man, Wharton said, at which point he came at them with the knife and ignored repeated commands to stop.
After a deputy shot the man, rescue workers immediately began lifesaving efforts, Wharton said. Rescue workers were already on the scene when the shooting took place.
The man died at the scene. No one else was in the home at the time of the shooting, and no officers were injured.
Sheriff Steve Dempsey said it was the first officer-involved shooting in his 36 years with the Sheriff’s Office.
“My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved in this tragic event,” Dempsey said.
At Dempsey’s request, the state police Shooting Investigative Team is investigating the incident.
Neither the deputy nor the victim was immediately identified. The victim was described only as a white male.
The deputy was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation, which Wharton said was in its early stages.
Copyright 2015 The Free Lance-Star