Chicago suburb police officer shoots, kills hatchet wielding man who pulled up during traffic stop

A suburban Chicago-area police officer shot and killed a hatchet-wielding man seen on shocking body camera footage pulling up during a traffic stop in the city of Naperville, Illinois, police said. 

The Naperville Police Department, in releasing a still from the bodycam footage, said an officer was conducting a traffic stop around 11 a.m. Friday near the intersection of Bond Street and McDowell Road when an unrelated vehicle pulled up next to the vehicle the officer had pulled over.

A man, described as a White male in his 20s, exited the vehicle and charged at the officer with a hatchet in his hand, police said. A still image taken from the officer’s bodycam shows the man dressed in all black clothing brandishing the weapons in his right hand as he appears to barrel toward the officer. 

The officer, a 22-year-veteran of the Naperville Police Department, which serves the city of about 145,000 people approximately 28 miles west of Chicago, discharged a firearm, striking the suspect. 

CHICAGO MAN SUSPECTED OF SHOOTING POLICE OFFICER HAD ARREST RECORD WITH GUN CHARGE THAT WAS DROPPED: REPORT 

The man was transported to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead. 

The department blurred the suspect’s face in the released image. His name was not immediately released pending notification of family, police said. 

The officer was not injured in the incident, the department said. 

The DuPage County Metropolitan Emergency Response and Investigative Team (MERIT) and the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office were immediately notified and are conducting an independent investigation into this incident, according to Naperville police. 

Anyone who may have witnessed this incident is asked to call Lt. Thayer, commander of MERIT’s public integrity team, at (630) 434-5653.