Arlington police fatally shoot man holding motel guest at knifepoint
ARLINGTON, Texas - Arlington police say a pair of officers opened fire on a suspect who was holding a man at knifepoint overnight.
It happened at a Motel 6 off North Collin Street near AT&T Stadium early Wednesday morning. The suspect died from his injuries.
Police were called to the area around 1 a.m. after reports of a man with a knife banging on doors and acting erratically.
When Arlington police arrived, they scoured each floor. They heard someone yelling for help from inside a motel room. Officers forced the door open.
"The officers encountered two males: one holding a knife to the other male. The victim was attempting to keep the knife away from himself while still yelling for help. The victim was also injured and bleeding as this was going on," explained Arlington Police Lt. Courtney White. "The two males were still struggling. The officers began to give commands for the suspect male to drop the knife."
Police say the suspect refused to drop the knife. Both officers fired their weapons, striking the suspect.
The suspect later died at the hospital.
The stabbing victim survived.
No officers were injured.
Investigators say the two men didn’t know each other.
"The suspect was going door to door, yelling and banging on various motel rooms," White said. "We believe the victim heard the yelling and opened up the door to his motel room when he was confronted by the male carrying the knife."
Arlington police believe the suspect was connected to an earlier criminal mischief call where a man was throwing trash cans.
The clerk of a nearby gas station tells FOX 4 they had trash cans thrown early Wednesday morning.
At Wednesday’s press conference, Arlington police touched on the city’s violent weekend.
Saturday evening, two teenagers were killed at a short-term rental just behind the Motel 6.
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"We have stepped up our close patrol with the game coming to AT&T stadium," Lt. White said. "In this situation, officers did what they needed to do, which was save a victim’s life."
Police say the suspect will be identified by the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office. Investigators only said he is believed to be in his early 30s.
Body camera video from Arlington police should be released at a later date.
Per department policy, both officers have been placed on administrative leave.