An officer-involved shooting that led to a fatal standoff at the Vantage Point Inn in Woodland Hills has left a man dead, authorities reported. The incident occurred late Sunday night on the 21700 block of Ventura Boulevard, as reported by the LAPD.
The Los Angeles Police Department was dispatched to the scene after receiving calls around 10:15 p.m. of a vandalism suspect allegedly armed with a gun, according to the LAPD. Witnesses described the suspect as holding a gun before police arrived, and the ensuing confrontation quickly escalated. When confronted by officers, the suspect reportedly fired what appeared to be two firearms, causing an exchange of gunfire that prompted the suspect to flee back into the hotel.
Perimeter secured by the responding officers, help was sought from the LAPD's Metropolitan Division Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) along with a Tactical Emergency Medical Support Unit from the Los Angeles Fire Department. After the suspect refused to surrender, the SWAT team made entry to the hotel, ultimately finding the suspect, identified as 47-year-old Benjamin Prince Bradley, with gunshot wounds at the bottom of a stairwell, as per the LAPD.
Bradley was assessed by the Tactical Emergency Medical Support Unit but was pronounced deceased on the scene, the LAPD disclosed. Found at the scene were an AEA Harpoon double barrel shot air pistol, loaded with an air cartridge in each barrel, along with an AEA model B&WT9 air rifle, loaded with seven rounds in the cylinder. The weapons were confirmed to be capable of firing metallic rounds of ammunition and were booked as evidence.
