Man dead, officer injured after Mesa Police standoff

By Connor Van Ligten
Mail

One man is dead and one officer is injured after a standoff between a driver and Mesa Police officers near Sossaman and Ray Roads on Oct. 29.

Officers responded to a call for service just after 2 a.m. on Oct. 29. The caller told police that a man who may have been impaired was sitting in his vehicle on the property and asked for police to trespass the man from the property, according to a press release from the Mesa Police Department,

When officers confronted the man, he became confrontational and fled in his vehicle, according to the release. Officers used a grappler device to stop the vehicle and deployed bean bag and pepper ball munitions. A standoff ensued, where the man shot at officers from his vehicle. One officer was struck by gunfire and suffered non-life threatening injuries.

The release says officers used less lethal munitions in a attempt to have the man surrender peacefully. However, one gunshot was heard coming from the man’s vehicle and he was later pronounced dead at the scene. The release did not clarify if the man died via suicide.

The Gilbert Police Department under the East Valley Critical Incident Response Team is investigating the incident, which has no outstanding suspects, according to the press release.

Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.

Connor Van Ligten
Reporter | Fountain Hills/Scottsdale

cvanligten@iniusa.org

After graduating from Arizona State University's Cronkite School in spring 2022, Connor Van Ligten spent a little over year as a reporter for WWL-TV in New Orleans before finding themselves back in Phoenix in October of 2023. Now back in the Valley and writing for the Mesa Independent and the Daily Independent, Connor is ready to tell meaningful stories and report on important civic issues facing Mesa. Connor is a big fan of the 49ers, Warriors, pro wrestling, anime, dogs and fighting video games.