Phoenix police shoot and kill former NFL player Ekom Udofia

Phoenix police have released video footage showing officers begging a former NFL player Ekom Udofia to put down a gun so they wouldn’t have to shoot him just prior to opening fire.

Police fatally shoot Ekom Udofia

Ekom Udofia, 33, was fatally shot by Phoenix officers on Nov. 30. Body camera video showed two officers arriving on the scene just after 2 a.m after receiving a call of a possible armed gunman messing with cars. After stepping out of the car, they immediately notice that Udofia had a gun.

Authorities released a critical incident briefing Monday (Dec. 14) that included body-worn camera video showing Udofia approaching police officers while they yelled repeatedly for him to drop his weapon before shooting him multiple times.

“Please, please don’t make me shoot you,” one officer said. He also repeatedly told Udofia to drop the weapon, which was later determined to be a BB gun. Udofia did not appear to say anything as he continued to walk toward the officers and their patrol car.

“Dude, I got to shoot him,” the officer said to his partner just before opening fire.

Three officers shot at Udofia during the incident, firing at least 10 times as well as several other less-lethal munitions.

He later died of his injuries.

His football career

Ekom Udofia played collegiate football at Stanford University, and spent a brief time in the NFL as a defensive lineman with the Cincinnati Bengals and New Orleans Saints. Friends described him as a ‘gentle’ giant. He also played professional football in Canada.

When Udofia moved back to the Phoenix area, he was arrested several times. According to court records, mental health issues had contributed to the criminal activity.

Udofia’s death had called attention to how people experiencing a mental health crisis can end up in dangerous police encounters.

“Our medical community, our community as a whole needs to step up to do a better job providing help to people who are having mental health issues,” Andy Anderson, a retired Phoenix assistant police chief told ABC 15 Arizona.

Anderson said officers often do not learn until after-the-fact whether an individual had a history of mental health problems.

“It’s too late to get a social worker involved when somebody has a gun in their hand,” said Anderson. “But there are other calls, and it’s going to come down to evaluating those calls and some kind of protocol that you put in place.”

Phoenix authorities say no officers were injured and Udofia’s shooting remains under investigation.