A 38-year-old man who was fatally shot by Los Angeles Police Department officers in Hollywood was identified Saturday.
The Los Angeles County Office of Medical Examiner identified him as Juan Guerrero Rojo.
Officers from the LAPD’s Hollywood Division were dispatched at 3:35 p.m. Thursday to an apartment complex in the 1400 block of North Bronson Avenue, near Sunset Boulevard, after reports of a possibly suicidal man, police said.
“The comments of the call indicated the Person Reporting (Guerrero Rojo) stated he was armed with a knife, threatening to kill himself, speaking to ghosts, and had expressed that he would kill anyone who approached his front door,” according to a police statement.
Officers entered the building and as they neared the door, announced their presence and heard Guerrero Rojo yelling from inside the apartment, police said.
“The subject abruptly opened the door. The officers repositioned themselves further away from the apartment door and attempted to communicate with the subject again,” according to the LAPD statement. “Shortly thereafter, the subject suddenly exited the apartment and ran towards the officers armed with a large kitchen knife.”
A shooting involving officers and a discharge of a 40mm less-lethal foam launcher occurred near simultaneously, police said.
Paramedics took Guerrero Rojo to a hospital, where he later died as a result of his injuries. No officers or bystanders were injured.
Detectives recovered the knife at the scene and booked it as evidence, police added.