UPDATE: Officer involved shooting under investigation in Milford, name released
Jan. 7 – UPDATE: Delaware State Police have released the name of the man killed in the officer-involved shooting Sunday evening.
The man has been identified as 27-year-old Brandon Roberts of Dover.
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MILFORD, Del. – A police shooting that happened on Sunday has raised lots of questions for both investigators and the community of Milford as the investigation moves forward.
Some of the residents in Silver Lake Estates did not want to talk to 47 ABC on camera but they say the 27-year-old, who was shot, did not deserve to die this way. Others say, unfortunately, they aren’t surprised that something like this happened in this area.
“Yeah they are in this building or they’re back there a lot and there’s always something going on,” says Roosevelt Thomas, a resident of the Silver Lake Estates Apartments.
According to locals, it’s not uncommon to see police in Milford’s Silver Lake Estates. “(Residents) are scared of saying things because they think the people that are dealing the drugs are going to hurt them,” says Thomas.
But Roosevelt Thomas says he’s lived here for almost five years and knew something wasn’t quite right on Sunday around 6 p.m, when a 27-year-old man was shot dead by two officers. “I was just sitting in my car right here and I saw six police officers cars went back there and then the ambulance came behind them.”
Authorities say Milford Police responded to the complex for a “domestic incident involving weapons”.
“It was a lot of police sirens and they got right here and then they turned it off ,” says Thomas.
Investigators say the police shooting was in self-defense. They say the 27-year-old Dover man walked into the building’s hallway with a knife and threatened them. So they responded with lethal force but that’s not what residents want to hear. “I’m sorry about that. God bless their family,” says Thomas.
Police tried to give first aid but the man was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
47 ABC asked Delaware State Police quite a few questions about this situation. First off, police aren’t saying who originally called them but some residents tell 47 ABC the 27-year-old man did. If Milford Police do have body cameras, State Police will not be releasing the video. Police knew a knife was going to be involved before they got to the apartment building. Lastly, officials can’t confirm how many times the man was shot by the two officers.
The Milford Police Department has asked Delaware State Police to handle the investigation as it moves forward. Milford Police tell 47 ABC, the officers that were involved are on administrative leave per department policy. Police are waiting to release the victim’s name until his family is notified.
The officers involved in the incident were not injured and there are no other reported injuries.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
