A body camera strapped to an officer in Spiro, Oklahoma captured the moment a sex offender is accused of pulling a gun on him in late July.
“Mr. Reed, please let go of the gun,” the officer can be heard saying. “I don’t want to die. I’ve got kids.”
The unnamed officer was following up on a tip that John Reed, 70, wanted on an arrest warrant for a child sex abuse cases in Missouri and California, was in the area.
“We were told that he may possibly be trying to flee the area,” Spiro police chief Michael Draper told KFSM news.
Spiro Police accused Reed of failing to register as a sex offender in Oklahoma, where they estimate he has been living for six months.
In the body cam video released by the police department this week, the officer asks Reed to step out of his trailer. Reed says he’ll be right out after he puts on his suspenders.
Reed allegedly turns around with a gun and a struggle ensues. Investigators say the body cam fell during the struggle.
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The officer pleads with Reed to drop the gun several times throughout the tussle and eventually the officer fires his weapon, striking Reed in the hip.
“I believe he had every intention of shooting the officer,” Chief Draper said. “I’m 100 per cent behind him. He did everything he had to do.”
The officer is on paid leave during the investigation and Reed is set to undergo surgery on his hip.
The county sheriff said Reed is facing more charges, including assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer. They are currently interviewing three children that they believe Reed had contact with.
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