OMAMA, Gunma -- A man who was shot by a policeman Saturday after slashing another officer while being taken to a police station for questioning died at a hospital, police said.
Local police declined to comment on whether the officer's use of a gun was appropriate. "We can't comment on the incident now," said Yukio Araki, director of Omama Police Station the two officers belong to.
At around 9:15 a.m., the man sitting in the back seat of a police car in Omama who had been taken in questioning for alleged trespassing, suddenly went berserk and slashed a sergeant sitting next to him in the face, according to investigators.
Another sergeant who was driving the car slammed on the brakes, got out of the vehicle, opened the back door and tried to stop him. However, after he continued to resist, the officer fired two shots at the man. Both bullets hit the man in the shoulder, causing him severe injuries.
He was rushed to hospital where he died about three hours later. The sergeant also suffered slight injuries to the face after being slashed by the suspect.
The man, aged in his 30s, was being taken to a police station for questioning on suspicion of trespassing. (Mainichi)
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