WHITEHALL, Ohio — The Whitehall Division of Police released body camera video showing two officers firing shots and killing a suspect early Friday morning.
According to a release, two officers heard gunfire coming from the area of East Main Street and South Hamilton Road near the Roses Store parking lot around 2 a.m. At the same time, the Flock Gunshot Detection System alerted officers to gunshots in the same area.
Officers arrived at the parking lot and saw two vehicles — a parked Honda Pilot and a dark SUV, which was leaving the area.
Police said the two officers approached the Honda to investigate the shots fired and check on the occupants. Officers found two Hispanic men in the front seats.
Body-camera video shows one officer talking to the driver and a second officer talking to the passenger. The officers can be heard asking the men if they speak English and they said no.
While trying to speak to the men, police said the officers saw a handgun in the SUV. Police said the officers told the men, in English and Spanish, to put their hands up.
The driver of the SUV, 35-year-old William Morales Villatoro, complied, but police said the passenger, 36-year-old Santiago Elias Alfaro Munoz, did not comply.
The officer can be heard on the body camera telling Munoz to put his hands up several times, but Munoz ignored him. The officer then opened Munoz's door. One second later, Munoz is seen reaching toward the center console area. Police said Munoz lunged back toward the officer, but that could not be clearly seen in the body camera video.
Both officers then fired shots, striking Munoz at least once. It's unclear if both officers struck Munoz.
Officers attempted life-saving measures on Munoz and turned him over to medics who took him to Mount Carmel East Hospital where he later died. It's unclear how many times he was shot.
Police said four guns were found inside the Honda. Villatoro was arrested on one felony count of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle.
"This was a dangerous but tragic situation,” said Chief Mike Crispen. “Our officers are trained to respond to threats of violence, especially when guns are involved. Our prayers are with the families of both the deceased and our officers.”
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation is handling the investigation into the shooting.