HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Police shot and killed a man at a South Florida home on Saturday.
Homestead Police Captain Fernando Morales told reporters that officers were dispatched to a residence following reports of shots fired early Saturday morning, the Miami Herald reported.
Police arrived at the house in Homestead, a suburb south of Miami, and encountered Leandro Chong.
They said he threw objects at them and placed his hands inside a fanny pack. Officers then requested assistance from the Miami-Dade Police Department’s SWAT team.
Morales did not say what directly caused officers to fire at Chong, but just that the situation escalated "at some point" and "forced" officers to fire their weapons.
Officials did not share whether a firearm was recovered after the shooting.
The day before Chong was killed, police said they had responded to a call at the same house in reference to a disturbance of some sort. A GoFundMe started by Chong's loved ones claims that his mom had called a "rescue" phone number to help get Chong into a rehabilitation facility. Police said they ended up leaving the home that day because they decided Chong didn't pose a threat.
It's not clear why Chong was not able to get into a rehab facility that day. The GoFundMe page stated that Chong was a "happy soul" who suffered from a mental health disorder, and was experiencing an "episode" when he was shot by police.
No one else was injured in the shooting.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement is investigating the shooting. The involved officers are on administrative leave.
