PAYSON, Utah, March 16, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Police shot and injured a man accused of shoplifting after he allegedly threatened an officer with a knife Saturday.
Officers responded at 5:41 p.m. to reports of a shoplifter at Payson Market, 586 N. Main St., Payson Police Sgt. Mimi Sandoval said.
The man left the store while officers were en route and later was spotted near 400 S. Main St., Sandoval said.
The two officers got out of their vehicles and called out to the man, ordering him to stop, she said.
“They saw that he had a knife in his hand, and they started giving him commands to drop the knife several times,” Sandoval told Gephardt Daily.
One of the officers deployed a Taser on the man, but it was not effective, she said.
“He turned and was facing our officers and went after one of our officers with the knife in hand, and he got shot by that officer,” Sandoval said.
Officers began rendering first aid to the man, who was later taken by ambulance to Mountain View Hospital. He then was transported by medical helicopter to Utah Valley Hospital in Provo, though the extent of his injuries was unknown.
Sandoval said she didn’t know how many times the man was shot.
No officers were injured in the shooting, and there was no further threat to the community, she said.
The Utah County critical incident team is investigating the shooting.
