LAFAYETTE, IN — A Lafayette man’s death early Friday in a police-action shooting was a suicide, according to preliminary autopsy results released Monday.
The decision to rule Rodolfo Requenes Jr.’s death a suicide, not a homicide, is based on information from the police and the coroner’s investigation, Tippecanoe County Coroner Carrie Costello said.
The cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds, according to the preliminary autopsy results.
Officers stopped Requenes, 50, at South Street and Sagamore Parkway about 12:25 a.m. Friday on suspicion that he was impaired, according to Lafayette police. During that traffic stop, he said things that led officers to believe Requenes might harm himself, then he drove away from the traffic stop.
Officers did not chase Requenes, as per the department’s policy. Instead, officers patrolling the east side kept an eye out for Requenes and his car.
About 1:15 a.m. Friday, Lafayette officers and Indiana State Police officers converged on Waterford Court Apartments on the east side of Frontage Road. They found Requenes’ car parked on Porsche Lane at the north end of the apartment complex, according to Lafayette police.
He ignored officers’ instructions and said he had a gun, police said.
He then reached his hand behind his back, as if he was going to draw a pistol from his waistband, according to police. That’s when officers fired.
The Journal & Courier asked whether police found a gun and whether Requenes was in or out of his car when he was shot. They have not answered either question.
After shooting him, officers tried to give Requenes medical help, but he died at the scene, according to police.
The officers have been placed on administrative leave while the incident is investigated. The names and the number of the officers involved have also not been released.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Police-action shooting of Lafayette man ruled a suicide
Reporting by Ron Wilkins, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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