A man was fatally shot by police Thursday afternoon when he opened fire on officers after attempting to rob a southeast Atlanta gas station, authorities said.
Even before the fatal encounter with police, the GBI said Ainsley Popwell Jr., 34, of Ellenwood, fired on an officer when he was given commands to drop his weapon. He was killed after exiting a Valero station at the intersection of Memorial Drive and Moreland Avenue, where Atlanta police said he held two clerks at gunpoint as officers waited outside with their weapons drawn.
“Our condolences to the family that lost a loved one today,” Atlanta police Chief Darin Schierbaum said during a news conference that followed the dramatic standoff. “This is never the outcome that any officer that goes to work each day wants to see.”
Atlanta police were originally called at around 1 p.m. to the 200 block of Memorial Drive about a person who was seen loading a gun, according to Deputy Chief Charles Hampton Jr. A responding officer saw an armed man, later identified as Popwell, wearing all black and told him to drop his weapon.
“(He) did not do that,” Hampton said. “The subject did fire one round, and that round did strike our patrol vehicle.”
Popwell then ran to the Valero station, and while still holding the weapon, broke into a clerk area and tried to open two cash registers, Hampton said. Backup officers arrived and surrounded the station, watching the scene unfold between the suspect and two employees inside, he said.
Popwell fired his weapon at least once during the standoff, which led officers to move to another area to gain a better tactical advantage, according to Hampton. When he exited the store, the GBI said he fired several shots and ran, prompting officers to open fire.
Popwell was struck by gunfire, and even while on the ground fired at least one more round in the direction of officers, Hampton said. He was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital, where he died from his injuries.
One officer sustained a minor injury and none was struck by gunfire. The Valero employees were not harmed.
“Our officers acted bravely and decisively to protect the community and to limit the risk that was certainly at play, among the store clerks that were there and then our citizens that were in the immediate area,” Schierbaum said.
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Investigators are still looking into Popwell’s activities on Memorial Drive before he was confronted by police. They believe they interrupted a robbery already in progress at the gas station.
Thursday’s incident was the 34th officer-involved shooting the GBI has been asked to investigate this year. At this time last year, the state agency had investigated 42 such shootings.
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