Man fatally shot by officers in West Fargo identified
Updated: 3:55 p.m. | Posted: 10 a.m.
Police in West Fargo say a man has been fatally shot by an officer following a high-speed chase.
The man was identified as 32-year-old Justin Lee Dietrich. Four SWAT operators fired at the suspect, two of the officers were identified as Fargo Police Sergeant Shane Aberle and Fargo Police Sergeant Troy Hannig.
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Chief Heith Janke said the pursuit began about 8 p.m. when police attempted to pull Dietrich over while searching for a suspect in possession of stolen handguns. Janke said Dietrich rammed a squad car and eventually stopped in a driveway.
West Fargo Police attempted to convince Dietrich to surrender for over an hour, according to a press release from the city of West Fargo and the Fargo Police Department.
KFGO reported the Red River Valley SWAT Team and negotiators were called to the scene. Janke said police believed Dietrich had weapons in his truck.
The suspect eventually got out of his vehicle and "presented himself as an imminent threat to the SWAT officers" who shot and killed him, the chief said.
Dietrich was given medical treatment on the scene and was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Officers Hannig and Aberle have been placed on paid administrative leave.
Police haven't said whether Dietrich was armed. The North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation has taken over the case.