THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Ventura County deputies shot a man accused of threatening people with a machete at a Thousand Oaks shopping mall earlier this week.
It happened just before 6:30 a.m. on Oct. 24, when deputies were called out to the Ventu Park Shopping Center. The department had received calls that a man was walking around, threatening people with a machete.
When deputies got there, they found the man and tried to detain him, the sheriff’s office said. That’s when deputies tried to use a Taser on him, which also didn’t work. The man then ran off and into one of the businesses in the shopping center. Deputies said the man was threatening employees, and that’s when they shot him.
Deputies gave the man aid, and paramedics took him to the hospital. He’s currently in critical condition, according to the sheriff’s office.
SUGGESTED: Inglewood homeowner confronts machete-wielding man who broke into his car
After investigating, deputies discovered that the same man was allegedly responsible for other crimes nearby earlier that morning.
Investigators said that before the scene at the shopping center, the same man used the machete to break a window at the Palm Garden Hotel, before walking to the 76 Gas Station nearby. There, deputies said the man attacked another man before stealing his car. He allegedly drove that car to the shopping center, where he confronted another man, and used the machete to vandalize his car, the department said.
The department has not identified the man. They are still investigating, and plan to release body camera footage of the shooting within the next 45 days. Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 805-384-4737.