RALEIGH, N.C. – Raleigh Police Chief Cassandra Deck-Brown has released a 5-day report in the fatal officer-involved shooting of Soheil Antonio Mojarrad.

  • Raleigh Police Chief Deck-Brown has released a 5-day report on the officer involved shooting of Soheil Mojarrad.
  • The report says that Officer W.B. Edwards confronted Mojarrad about a stolen cell phone, and Mojarrad pulled a knife on him. 
  • No footage of the incident was captured. 

According to the report, police were called to the Sheetz at 5200 New Bern Avenue about a unruly customer around 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 20. Officer W.B. Edwards, who was just pulling into the parking-lot to refill his cruiser, was met by the caller who then told him the customer had stolen a cell phone.

PREVIOUSLY REPORTED: Man Identified in Fatal Officer-Involved Shooting

Edwards circled the shopping center next to the Sheetz and managed to locate a man who matched the description of the customer give by the person who called 911.

 

 

According to the report, Edwards attempted to communicate with the man, who was later identified as Mojarrad, but was first ignored and then greeted with a variety of swear words.

As the confrontation continued, police say Mojarrad pulled out a knife, at which point Officer Edwards demanded he drop it. Mojarrad did not and, instead, advanced toward Edwards. Edwards then fired his service weapon at Mojarrad, resulting in his death.

While Edwards and his cruiser did have cameras on them, the cruiser’s camera was pointed away from the shooting, and Edward’s body cam was not on.

Authorities collected surveillance footage from private businesses in the area, but none of them captured the shooting.

The SBI has stepped in to investigate this case and, upon conclusion, will present their findings to Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman for review.

Edwards has been placed on administrative leave, as is standard procedure.

Mojarrad's family issued a statement Thursday saying:

“We continue to grieve the loss of our beautiful son and brother. Soheil wanted the best for himself and everyone, and would never intentionally want to hurt anyone. Sadly, like many others, he suffered from mental illness. He was an incredibly good person. We believe he died a wrongful death, and will continue to fight for justice on his behalf. We are sincerely grateful for those who have shown us so much compassion during this difficult time.”

 

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