FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The Fresno Police Department has released bodycam video showing an officer shooting a suspect holding a gun in April 2023.
Police say, on Tuesday, April 4, 2023, shortly before 7:00 p.m. Fresno Police received reports of a gunshot heard in the alley parallel to the 2600 Block of North Fresno Street.
WARNING: This body camera video provided by the Fresno Police Department is violent and may contain foul language.
According to authorities, multiple 911 callers said they heard the shot and screaming from a group of people in the alley.
Later investigators say they learned that a family disturbance escalated, and one family member shot another. One of the family members told dispatchers that “her son had been shot by her son-in-law.”
Fresno Police officers described the scene as “chaotic” when they arrived.
Officers say they contacted the gunshot victim, whose face, neck, and chest were covered in blood. Officers were told the suspect, who was later identified as 42-year-old Richard Castrillo, was further down the alley, and he still had a gun in his possession.
According to authorities, as officers approached Castrillo, they saw him struggling on the ground with another man and a woman standing next to them.
The man was later identified as the gunshot victim’s father and the woman as the gunshot victim’s sister. Officers say they told them to “move out of the way” multiple times and that they eventually complied.
Fresno Police say the officer told Castrillo to ‘drop the gun,’ that he was holding in his right hand. Castrillo raised the gun and pointed it at the officers as well as other bystanders in the alley, according to officials.
Officials say the officer discharged his service weapon, striking Catrillo. Officers say they approached Castrillo, removed the handgun, and rendered medical aid until paramedics arrived. Castrillo was transported to the hospital where he has been listed in stable but critical condition.
The Fresno Police Department says this critical incident is being fully investigated, and the findings will be handed over to the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office, Internal Affairs, and the Office of Independent Review.