POLICE FATALLY SHOOT MAN AT UNDERCOVER METH BUY

Fresno police narcotics officers shot and killed a man they say lunged for
a gun during an undercover methamphetamine buy late Tuesday.

"They yelled at the subject to put his hands up where they could see them,"
Lt. John Fries said. "Instead, he reached for his gun, and the officers fired."

It wasn't immediately known how many officers fired or how many times the
man was hit.

"We won't know a lot of the details until the investigation is complete,"
Fries said.

The incident began about 8:45 p.m. in the parking lot of the Days Inn at
East and Jensen avenues.

Undercover narcotics officers had arranged to buy about 2 pounds of
methamphetamine from the man and a woman, described as a co-suspect, Fries
said.

The couple, in a gray Oldsmobile, met the officers in the back of the
parking lot to make the sale.

When the officers saw the drugs, an arrest team of six to 10 other officers
moved in, Fries said.

The woman, who was outside the car, was arrested without incident. The man,
who was in the car, was shot when he reached for a "large handgun" on the
seat next to him.

Fresno resident Brian Harper was in the McDonald's parking lot about 30
yards away when the shooting took place.

"I heard about five to seven shots and I looked over and saw probably five
or six officers around the car," Harper said.

The man was pronounced dead at the scene. His body remained in the car late
into the night as the investigation continued.

Fries said he didn't know whether the suspects had been staying in a room
at the hotel, but officers were seen walking in and out of two nearby rooms
during the investigation.

The female suspect collapsed after the shooting and was taken to University
Medical Center for observation.

Charges against her are pending, but Fries did not speculate on what they
might be.

"That will be up to the district attorney to decide," he said.

The officers involved in the shooting were placed on paid administrative
leave pending the outcome of the investigation.