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Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department releases bodycam footage of fatal shooting of car theft suspect in East LA

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has released new video of the fatal shooting of a car theft suspect at the end of a brutal chase.

The incident began with the carjacking of a 94-year-old man in East Los Angeles on the morning of July 10. Officers spotted the car hours later and gave chase when the suspect refused to stop.

During the chase, the suspect backed up with officers closely behind him on more than one occasion in an attempt to escape, ramming their vehicles, which was considered an assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer.

94-year-old victim of car theft in East LA speaks out: “He said to me, 'Get out of here!'”

A 94-year-old man was the victim of a brutal carjacking in East Los Angeles on Wednesday. The crime sparked a dangerous chase that ended with police officers shooting the suspect.

At the end of the chase, he crashed into a light pole in the Pico-Union neighborhood and was again trapped by police cars. He backed up the gas and tried to ram the patrol cars and push them back.

At that point, officers opened fire, firing several shots into the rear window. The suspect was seriously injured and died days later. He was later identified as 19-year-old Luis Flores.

The sheriff's department has released body camera footage from the officers involved for transparency purposes, showing their view as they stand behind the suspect as he puts the vehicle in reverse before opening fire.

Los Angeles County sheriff's officers opened fire after a suspect crashed into a light pole at the end of a chaotic chase in Pico-Union County.

No MPs were injured.

The California Department of Justice is investigating the incident under state law.

The full video released by the LASD can be viewed here. Warning: Contains violent images.

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