OKC Police Officer Shoots, Kills Suspect Who Had Stolen Gun

By Evan Anderson, News 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- An Oklahoma City police officer used deadly force shooting and killing a suspect after he brandished a hand gun during a struggle in the street.

Police say this all happened around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday at the intersection of Cashion Place and Youngs.

The officer has been identified as Anthony Franklin. He's been with the OKC police department for five years in the Will Rogers division. When Officer Franklin arrived and confronted the suspect, apparently leaving the home, police say a struggle began.

A woman called 911 Tuesday morning saying a man she knew was trying to get into her home, but she wouldn't let him inside because of a previous theft.

Police say Ofc. Anthony Franklin never actually reached the residence and ended up confronting the suspect who fit the description out in the street.

"We thought it was a wreck. This is a common area where people run the stop sign. We did not hear anything," said nearby neighbor, Bernt Panseze.

At some point during that confrontation, police say there was a struggle or brawl between the suspect and the officer, where the suspect brandished what police later determined, was a stolen gun.

"We still don't know at what point it started, or why it started, and we still won't know until the officer is interviewed, which we're not expecting that to be accomplished until probably Friday, maybe even Monday," said OKC Police Capt. Dexter Nelson.

12/18/2012 Related Story: OKC Police: Man Fatally Shot By Officer Had Stolen Gun

Police say two witnesses saw the entire altercation unfold. One man driving by got out of his car to try and assist Ofc. Franklin, struggling with the suspect in the middle of the street.

"But the officer was able to fire the shot before that person was able to physically help them," said Capt. Nelson.

"This is the first time I've heard anything, and I've lived here12 years," said Gene Berger, who lives just a block from where Ofc. Franklin shot and killed the suspect.

"This is not normal, this is a historical neighborhood, it's normally quiet," Panseze said.

Capt. Nelson says Ofc. Franklin must be given 48-hours to seek counsel before he's interviewed. He says the officer was injured during the brawl, but News 9 has learned it was just minor cuts and bruises from the struggle, and he has been released from the hospital.