Last Monday, a young man, Imanol Aparicio, lost his life in a police shooting in San Diego. The San Diego Police Department received a distress call about a shooting incident, involving Aparicio. However, when officers arrived onsite found Aparicio had fled.
Around 30 minutes later, Sergeant Matthew Ruggiero, Officer Jeremy Avalos, and Officer Jonah Tafoya found Aparicio walking on the street. Initially, Aparicia stopped, but then fled on foot, after ignoring their warnings. Body camera footage, now released, showed the sad final moments in which multiple shots were fired.
Then ensuing confrontation, still under investigation, had Aparicio allegedly reaching for his waistband, resulting in the discharge of the police weapon, per police reports. As per eyewitness accounts, "Go for it," were Aparicio's provocating words leading to the officers opening fire on him.
Further inquiry revealed that Aparicio was carrying an unregistered, loaded firearm at the time, which malfunctioned during the incident. A 30-round magazine, loaded with 13 rounds, was also recovered from a backpack belonging to Aparicio.
Investigation into the incident is ongoing, helmed by the San Diego County Sheriff's Department Homicide Unit, in association with several other agencies, such as the San Diego County District Attorney's Office and the Commission on Police Practices (CPP).
