Prince William County, Virginia, police shot and killed a man they said brandished a gun at strangers and later ran toward the Potomac Mills mall armed with a crossbow.
In a news release, police said they located 52-year-old Harrison Charles Deppe, of Woodbridge, inside a parked vehicle on Potomac Mill Circle, near Garza Way, at approximately 2:45 p.m. Thursday.
Deppe had brandished a gun in an unprovoked encounter with a stranger earlier that day, police said, as well as with another stranger on Wednesday.
According to police, officers attempted to negotiate with Deppe for several hours for a peaceful surrender. However, as police surrounded his vehicle in order to take him into custody, he ran toward the mall, armed with a crossbow.
The fatal shooting took place when Deppe was about 20 yards from the entrance to Nordstrom Rack, Prince William County Police Chief Peter Newsham said during an evening news conference, according to the Prince William Times. He said Deppe threatened officers several times during the encounter.
Newsham has requested that the regional Critical Incident Response Team investigate the police shooting.
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