Police are releasing the name of the suspect shot and killed by Phoenix police in Avondale on Wednesday night, KNXV reports.
Officials were called to the area of Dysart Road and Rancho Santa Fe Boulevard around 6 p.m. after receiving reports of a shooting.
A Phoenix police spokesperson said a motorcycle officer was attempting to pull over a vehicle for speeding. However, instead of stopping the driver, 38-year-old Erik Pamias, sped off and pulled into a business complex near Interstate 10 and Dysart Road.
Pamias refused to get out of the car or listen to the officer's commands, police said. The suspect is accused of ignoring officers' commands and rammed their patrol cars.
Pamias was able to get around the patrol cars blocking his path and drove on the sidewalk towards the front of businesses, police said. He then allegedly accelerated backward at an officer who shot the suspect.
The manager of Once Upon a Child, a used clothing store for kids, said she was inside the store when she heard gunshots outside.
"They were just looking to see what I was going to do and I knew that I had to keep my composure, but inside I thought I was going to lose it; I really did," Dolores Forsberg said.
According to the Avondale Fire Department, he suffered a gunshot wound to the chest and was taken to a local hospital for treatment where he later died.
I mean, they swarmed," Forsberg said. "As soon as everything went down they were there."
There was also a female passenger in the car during the shooting, police said. However, she wasn't injured.
No officers were injured during the incident either, a Phoenix police spokesperson said.
The suspect was driving a rental car with a California license plate that hadn't been returned to the facility in several months, police said. It's unknown if the suspect stole it.
"I just thank God that it wasn't something worse," Forsberg said. "'It could have been extremely catastrophic."
No additional information about the shooting has been released. We're waiting for an update.
