Suspect dead after officers open fire in West Haven

WEST HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — A person died following an officer-involved shooting Thursday afternoon in West Haven, according to police.

Police said that at around 5 p.m., officers were conducting an investigation at the Splash Car Wash on Boston Post Road in West Haven. The suspect, a 36-year-old from New Haven, displayed a firearm, according to police.

A Connecticut State Police sergeant and two New Haven officers discharged their weapons, causing injury to the suspect who was around the car, police said. The suspect later died from his injuries.

No injuries were reported among law enforcement personnel.

Police said the suspect, whose name has not yet been released, was known to them.

“Even though you’re arresting people, you get to know them, you get to know their families, and you don’t ever want this to happen,” New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson said at a Thursday night press conference. We don’t want this to happen, obviously. We work extremely hard to be safe, and we’ve been safe for a long period of time, and unfortunately, this happened,”

The Connecticut Office of the Inspector General is investigating the shooting.

Cell phone video from a Dunkin’ Donuts employee next to the car wash where the shooting occurred shows a large contingency of police officers showing up at the car wash.

Centi Diaz owns the restaurant a few doors down from the car wash and said he was in his office when heard the gun shots while in his office.

“It sounded like pop, pop, pop,” Diaz said.

The video below is from Sept. 19, 2024.

This is an ongoing investigation. Check back to News 8 for more updates.

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