Jose Manuel Meza Avendano, 21

Phoenix, Arizona
February 13, 2014

Phoenix police released the name of the man who was shot and killed by police Feb. 13 after police say he swung a samurai sword at three officers.

Jose Manuel Meza Avendano, 21, was shot by officers near 19th Avenue and McDowell Road at about 5:45 a.m., according to police.

A police sergeant noticed Avendano sitting in an Impala with the hood up. The officer ran a search on the car’s license plate and discovered that it did not match the car, police said.

Three officers approached the car but Avendano refused to listen, police said.

Avendano eventually left the car holding a sword in a sheath and swung it at the officers, according to police. Officers used a stun gun on Avendano who then took the sword out of its sheath and swung it at the officers again, officials said.

The officers fired an unknown number of shots and Avendano was pronounced dead at the scene.

It was the ninth officer-involved shooting in the Valley this year and the second in Phoenix. the others were in Glendale, El Mirage, Maricopa, Eloy, Mesa, Scottsdale and Wittman.