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Newport police fatally shoot man during confrontation

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Police said they shot and killed a 22-year-old Orange County man after he tried to attack them at a convenience store in Newport Beach on Thursday night.

The Orange County coroner’s office Friday afternoon identified the man as Gerrit Vos of San Clemente.

Newport police encountered Vos about 8:15 p.m. Thursday when they responded to a 911 call about a disturbance at a 7-Eleven near Superior and Placentia avenues, said Newport Beach police spokeswoman Jennifer Manzella.

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When officers arrived, they found Vos in a dispute with a store employee, she said.

Officers tried to intervene, but Vos charged at them while holding a sharp metal object, Manzella said.

At least one officer fired an unknown number of shots and wounded Vos, who died about two hours later.

Officers also tried to use less-lethal means to subdue Vos, said Manzella, declining to provide details because the investigation is continuing.

Newport Beach fire personnel took Vos to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, where he succumbed to his injuries at 10:18 p.m., according to the Orange County coroner’s office.

No officers were injured during the incident. A store clerk sustained minor injuries during the altercation with the suspect, police said.

Vos had previous run-ins with law enforcement, according to public records.

The Orange County district attorney’s office filed a cocaine-possession charge against Vos in 2011.

Orange County sheriff’s deputies reported that they stopped him in Rancho Santa Margarita with the drug, but the single felony charge was eventually dismissed.

In 2012, the district attorney again charged Vos with felony drug possession and two other misdemeanors. Deputies said they found him with heroin, metal knuckles and drug paraphernalia.

Vos pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor weapons charge, and a judge dismissed the other charges.

Newport Beach police are still investigating Vos’ actions Thursday and encourage anyone with information to contact Det. Justin Morouse at (949) 644-3762 or Sgt. Keith Krallman at (949) 644-3764.

The district attorney’s office will investigate the shooting to determine if the use of deadly force was justified.

Thursday was the first time Newport police shot someone since 2007, according to the department.

In June that year, officers shot and killed a 38-year-old Huntington Beach man when he rammed his car into a police cruiser after a chase through a residential neighborhood, police said at the time.

— Staff writer Hannah Fry contributed to this report

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