LAPD Kills Man Armed With Butcher Knife

On December 18, 2021, around 7:00 p.m., officers responded to a radio call of a man armed with a knife in the 900 block of East Adams Boulevard. When the officers arrived, they saw the suspect, later identified as 22-year-old Margarito Lopez, armed with a butcher knife. Lopez was ordered to drop the knife; however, he ignored the officer’s commands. An officer fired a 40 Millimeter Less-Lethal Launcher foam projectile at Lopez, which was ineffective. Lopez continued in the direction of the officers, still ignoring the officer’s commands to drop the knife. At that time, a second 40 Millimeter Less-Lethal foam projectile was fired, followed by an Officer-Involved Shooting. Lopez was struck by gunfire and fell to the ground. Los Angeles Fire Department personnel transported Lopez to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased. The knife Lopez was armed with was recovered at the scene.
No officers were injured during the incident.