Prosecutor: Fort Wayne officer justified in deadly shooting
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WISH) — An investigation of a November police shooting that resulted in the death of an 18-year-old man in Fort Wayne determined the officer involved was justified in using force, prosecutor say.
Prosecutors announced that result Friday as police released body cam footage in the shooting death of Wyatt Becker.
Police were called to a disturbance about 1 p.m. Wednesday in the 400 block of Poplar Street. That’s a residential area south of downtown Fort Wayne and northwest of Ivan Lebamoff Reservoir Park.
Footage from Becker’s home showed Becker wearing a blue hoodie and calling police. Becker reported to police that he was threatened by a male with a gun who ran off. Becker described the man as white and wearing a blue hoodie. After saying this, he hung up the phone, and walked away from the house.
Officer Andrew M. Fry was dispatched to the scene. Fry began at the department in 2014. He received letters of reprimand in 2016 and 2018 in relation to police vehicle crashes. He also received department commendations in 2018, 2019 and 2022.
Footage from Fry’s dashcam showed him following Becker on Poplar Street before Becker turned onto Hoagland Avenue.
The dashcam showed Fry getting out of his vehicle and demanding the man to put his hands up, but Becker didn’t stop walking. Bodycam footage showed Becker continuing to walk backwards north on Hoagland Avenue while Fry drew his weapon and radioed in to dispatch.
More dashcam footage showed Fry still following Becker and ordering him to stop. Becker stops and puts his hands up. Fry orders him to walk towards him backwards with his hands up. Bodycam footage shows Fry ordering Becker to stop walking, but he continues to walk towards Fry before reaching into his hoodie. Fry shoots Becker and kills him instantly.
Police found a knife inside Becker’s hoodie while investigating.
Additional footage from investigators showed Becker had watched videos of people committing suicide by cop, a method where a person calls police and behaves in a threatening manner, provoking a fatal response by police.
The department has not said if Fry’s status has changed as a result of the fatal shooting.
According to a release Friday, The Office of the Allen County Prosecuting Attorney concluded its review and determined Fry was justified in using force to prevent serious harm to himself.