Officers shoot and kill man armed with knife outside SW Fresno police station

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- An investigation is underway after three police officers opened fire on a man armed with a knife outside of their police station.

The incident took place just after 11 p.m. Saturday in a shopping center on Fresno and C Streets. That's where Fresno Police's southwest district station is located.

Chief Paco Balderrama detailed the early stages of the investigation.

"The suspect's incoherence and lack of communication, it could be mental health issues, it could be substance abuse... at this point, we don't know," Balderrama says.

That's when investigators say he approached officers -- making what Balderrama described as aggressive movements.

A third officer came to help de-escalate the situation, but investigators say he didn't stop -- leading all three to fire their weapons.

After several life-saving attempts, the man was taken to Community Regional Medical Center where he later died.

Balderrama says he's reviewed body camera footage from all angles and says what appears to be a seven-inch fixed blade is in the suspect's hand the entire time.

"As the officers are trying to talk, trying to de-escalate, this person is not engaging at all," Balderrama says. "I saw a sense of desperation the way he was acting the way he came toward officers in an aggressive manner with a knife in his hand."

Investigators say one witness was in the shopping center parking lot at the time of the shooting.

"Obviously this is a commercial area luckily there weren't a whole lot of people around so there wasn't any danger to the public," Balderrama says.

The Fresno County District Attorney's Office and Office of Independent Review are investigating the shooting.

All three officers involved have been placed on administrative leave.

In a news release Sunday, Balderrama revealed it's possible the man was suffering from mental health issues.

"Although it is early in the investigation, it is probable the deceased person was suffering from mental health issues," Balderrama says. "The loss of life is always a tragedy, but even more so when persons suffering from mental illness are unable to get assistance for their condition."