PHOENIX — A suspect is dead after a Mesa police officer shot him while conducting a traffic stop late Thursday.
The Mesa Police Department said the officer-involved shooting occurred near Broadway Road and Center shortly before 11 p.m.
An officer conducted a traffic stop on the suspect, who was riding a moped. The suspect drove away, and the officer followed and tried to get him to stop.
Police said a struggle ensued where the suspect grabbed and pulled on the officer's duty belt and yelled that he had the officer's gun.
The officer got away from the suspect and saw what he thought was a gun in the suspect's hand pointed at him, according to police.
The officer fired, hitting the suspect one time. The suspect was taken to a local hospital, where he died of his injuries.
The officer involved was not injured.
Police said no handgun was found at the scene, but the officer's taser was found on the ground in the area where the suspect had been standing.
The suspect has been identified as 30-year-old Jose Moreno. Police said Moreno had two outstanding warrants for his arrest. One was for kidnapping and the other was a misdemeanor warrant for failure to appear in court.
The officer who shot him has not been identified.
The investigation is ongoing.
