Man Fatally Shot By Police After Setting K-9 On Fire: Sheriff's Office

SAN DIEGO, CA — A man was fatally shot by a San Diego police officer Wednesday after authorities said he set a police K-9 on fire during a confrontation in North Park.

The shooting happened after San Diego Police Department officers responded around 9 a.m. to a report of a man vandalizing vehicles with a metal rod near El Cajon Boulevard and Oregon Street, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office.

Officers attempted to contact a man matching the description, but he ran into a business in the 4000 block of 30th Street and refused to come out, sheriff's officials said. Officers saw that the man was armed with an incendiary device and attempted to negotiate with him.

Police deployed a K-9, and the man ignited the device, setting the dog on fire, according to the sheriff's office. The man then moved toward the business's front door with the device, prompting an officer to fire multiple rounds, officials said.

The man was struck and taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly before noon. His identity was not immediately released.

Three SDPD officers suffered burns to their hands and were treated at a hospital before being released. The K-9 also suffered burns and was treated at a veterinary hospital.

The sheriff's Homicide Unit is investigating the shooting under a countywide agreement governing officer-involved shootings. The circumstances leading up to the confrontation remain under investigation.

Once the investigation is complete, the case will be forwarded to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office for review. SDPD will conduct a separate administrative review of the officer's use of deadly force.

Anyone with information was asked to call the sheriff's Homicide Unit at 858-285-6330 or San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.