TEMPLE, Texas — Temple Police have reported a suspect has died after being tased multiple times when an officer responded to a call Thursday afternoon.
Around 12:13 p.m., Temple PD says officers responded to a call about a welfare concern that came from the 2400 block of South 13th Street. The dispatcher reported to officers that there was "yelling" and that the caller was "out of breath" from someone "tearing up his house."
The suspect was reported to have been at the home earlier in the day, but returned in an erratic manner, and the caller said the suspect had strewn groceries all over the floor and dumped milk on the ground and was possibly under the influence of narcotics.
Officers arrived at the home roughly five minutes after the call came in and began talking to the person that called 911, who was crying.
The caller told police after that he had given the suspect money, and he had gone out and purchased crack cocaine before coming back to the apartment with "odd and abnormal behavior." The caller also told police he made an attempt himself at removing the suspect by force from his home before calling police.
When Temple PD officers entered the home, they found the suspect in the kitchen pulling things out of the refrigerator. Officers announced their presence with a taser aimed and told the suspect to stop what he was doing, with one saying, "we are here to help you."
Police say the suspect didn't respond to what the officer was saying, and drank different items that were around the kitchen like dish soap, oil, and other liquids. Around 12:20, the officer told the suspect to stop once again, who was seated in front of the refrigerator. He grabbed an item to drink, and one of the officers said, "I can't let him drink that."
One of the tasers was used, but it didn't seem to have an effect on the suspect. He soon after turned to the officers and kept moving around, trying to drink what he had in his hand again. At this point, a second taser was used by the officers as they tried to restrain him, but he continued to resist.
A taser was used for a third time unsuccessfully as the officers tried to restrain the suspect, but they were unsuccessful. The struggle continued, with the suspect's body at one point being partially in the fridge while he tried to drink whatever he wanted to consume.
The officers issued a final warning to the suspect before being tased for a fourth time at approximately 12:22 p.m. He struggled and resisted for a short time before going limp, and was declared unconscious, but breathing by one of the officers.
The suspect's body was pulled out of the refrigerator and handcuffs were put on him as EMS was called, but a minute later, at 12:23 p.m. he stopped breathing.
Officers attempted to perform CPR to save the man's life and issued Narcan, but were unable to resuscitate him, and he was declared dead at 12:59 p.m. An autopsy has been ordered, according to Temple PD.
The Texas Rangers have also been called in to investigate the incident due to the suspect's death. The investigation is active, police say.
In line with standard practice, Temple Police say the officer that used his taser has been placed on administrative leave with pay. An internal investigation is also being conducted so authorities have full knowledge of the events that took place.
Police are asking anyone with information on the incident to contact the Temple Police Department or Bell County Crime Stoppers. Both can be reached by calling 254-298-5500 or 254-526-8477 or by going to bellcountycrimestoppers.com.