A statement issued by the Santa Clara police department (SCPD) has justified the actions that saw them fatally shoot Indian techie Mohammed Nizamuddin at his residence in California on September 3. Police Chief Cory Morgan claimed Nizammudin had stabbed his roommate and continued to attack despite being told to stand down when the police had to intervene.
Reports about the Telengana man’s shooting death emerged late on Thursday, almost two weeks after the incident. Mohammed Nizamuddin, who left for the US in 2016, to pursue higher studies in Florida. He later moved to Santa Clara after getting employment and shared his residence with a few others when the incident happened.
According to the Santa Clara police, they received a call alerting them about the stabbing incident on September 3 at 6:18 am. “Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD) officers responded to the 1800 Block of Eisenhower Drive in Santa Clara for the report of a stabbing in a residence. The caller stated the suspect had stabbed one victim in the residence,” the statement read.
Chief Morgan said there was an altercation between the two roommates. “The situation had escalated, and the suspect was stabbing his roommate. The first-arriving officer ran to the front door and identified himself. The officer could hear a loud commotion inside and decisively made a crisis entry by kicking open the locked front door. The officer quickly followed the sound to the hallway where the attack was taking place. The officer saw four people in the hallway, including the suspect who was straddling the victim, effectively pinning him to the ground,” Chief Morgan said, while showing images from the body camera.
He added that the police personnel tried to de-escalate the situation with verbal commands, but the suspect ignored them and raised his hand again in a striking position. After the officer noted that the knife was coming again at the victim, he fired four bullets into Nizammuddin. Though he was rushed to a hospital, he soon died.
The SCPD chief added that Nizammudin used two knives to attack the victim, whose identity is unclear. The first knife broke away at the handle during the attack, after which he retrieved another one. "Based on our preliminary investigation, we believe the officer's actions prevented further harm and clearly saved at least one life," Morgan said.
Family at Mahabubnagar
Nizammudin’s father, Husnuddin, a retired teacher, told reporters that he learnt about the incident from her son’s friends. He added that they tried contacting him several times, only to learn later that he had been killed.
Social worker and Majlis Bachao Tehreek head Amjed Ullah Khan posted on X: “His mortal remains are lying in a hospital in Santa Clara, California. His father, Mohammed Hasnuddin, had requested the Ministry of External Affairs to inquire in detail into the death of his son and make necessary arrangements to send the mortal remains back to Mahbubnagar District in Telangana,” he added.