El Paso robbery suspect killed by police had BB gun

On By Rgal Nv

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A robbery suspect was armed with what turned out to be a BB gun when he was shot by El Paso police officers during an attempted arrest on an East Side street, report says deaths in custody.

Michael Abraham Hobbs, 39, died at the scene of the police shooting the afternoon of Aug. 23 on Vista Del Sol Drive, east of Lee Trevino Drive, states the death report filed by the Department of El Paso Police to the Texas Attorney General’s Office. .

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“This incident came out of nowhere and surprised everyone,” Hobbs’ brother, Gilbert Hobbs, said on a GoFundMe page raising money for funeral expenses. “…My brother was a good person and didn’t deserve to die the way he did. RIP Little brother, we love you.”

An obituary said Hobbs was survived by his mother, six children and other family members.

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According to a summary of the incident in the report, officers in street clothes from the Pebble Hills Tactical Unit, also known as the Tactical Unit, had Hobbs under surveillance because he was wanted on warrants arrest in connection with two robberies.

Tactical unit officers monitoring Hobbs in the area of ​​Vista Del Sol Drive and Larry Wadkins Drive requested uniformed officers to help take Hobbs into custody, the report states.

The uniformed officers arrived in a patrol car, got out and approached Hobbs “who immediately began to walk away from the officers” and ignored police commands to stop, according to the report.

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An officer from the tactical unit then approached Hobbs to assist the uniformed officers and saw Hobbs reaching into his waistband for a handgun. The officer fired his Taser electric stun gun, hitting Hobbs, but the Taser’s prongs “were ineffective,” the report states.

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Hobbs then “pulled a firearm from his waistband and pointed it in the direction of the officers, at which point both uniformed officers fired” and shot Hobbs, the report states. The handgun Hobbs possessed turned out to be a BB gun. No police officers were injured.

El Paso County court records show Hobbs has more than a half-dozen convictions for charges including credit/debit card abuse, vehicle burglary and drug possession dating back to 2003.