A private security guard shot and killed a man who was threatening grocery store employees in Sylmar on Tuesday, police said.
The 45-year-old man was threatening to cut grocery store employees with a piece of glass at a Vons store in the 13700 block of Foothill Boulevard.
The security guard, who was in uniform, shot the man in the head around 3:40 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Charlie Ramirez was shopping inside the store when he saw the man, who was bleeding from both arms. He said he lunged at a female cashier and threatened to take her hostage.
"He put a piece of glass next to her neck. After that everybody started scrambling around," Ramirez said.
A male cashier intervened and grabbed the woman from him, said LAPD Lt. Mike Kozak.
Carlos Sorto said his dashcam recorded the moments that led up to the shooting. The guard jumped out of his car when the man tapped on his window.
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"The person in uniform was asking him to stop or was giving verbal instruction. And he didn’t stop, and he went on top of him," Sorto said.
Kozak said the guard "used force to defend himself." He works for PTS Security Services, which did not return calls for comment as of Tuesday night.
The guard was detained and was being questioned by authorities.
