An SBI agent shot and killed a teen in an Apex parking lot. Why won’t he be charged?
The Wake County District Attorney said an off-duty State Bureau of Investigation officer was justified in fatally shooting an 18-year-old accused of pointing a gun at the officer.
On April 11, SBI agent Denzel Ward confronted Dayve Rafael-Sanchez after he and a woman allegedly stole a box of firearm ammunition from an Academy Sports + Outdoors store in Apex.
Ward fired on Rafael-Sanchez three times, killing him because Ward “reasonably believed his life was in danger at the time.” He accused Rafael Sanchez of pointing a firearm at him, according to Freeman.
District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said Tuesday that she decided to close the shooting investigation after reviewing evidence from the case, which included surveillance video and witness statements.
Ward, 29, was put on administrative leave after the shooting and the case was internally reviewed by his agency, an SBI spokesperson previously told The News & Observer.
Ward was not wearing a body camera at the time of the incident but was carrying his service weapon.
The case was different from other cases of a law enforcement officer shooting someone, since the State Bureau of Investigation is in charge of investigating such incidents, but could not investigate this case due to a conflict of interest, Freeman said previously.
Shooting outside Academy Sports store in Apex
The Apex Police Department, who investigated the case in lieu of the SBI, said Ward was shopping at the store, on his way home from training. As he left and walked toward his car, he spotted Rafael-Sanchez fleeing from the store, allegedly shoplifting.
Rafael-Sanchez was with Siomara Sibrian, 21, of Pittsboro, at the time.
Ward approached the pair, who got inside a vehicle, and attempted to detain them. Sibrian allegedly tried to start the vehicle and Ward “leaned into the car in an effort to prevent her from starting the vehicle,” according to Freeman.
Ward spotted a rifle on the floor of the front seat and took out his weapon. Ward said Rafael-Sanchez then grabbed the rifle and pointed it at Ward. Ward then shot him three times.
Freeman said that surveillance camera video from the Academy store only captured images of Rafael-Sanchez and Sibrian running in the parking lot and that parked vehicles blocked the view of Ward’s confrontation with them.
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Sibrian was charged with two counts of felony larceny and possession of a stolen firearm by Apex police in June, according to a previous news release.
Authorities recovered a Sig Sauer SGM 400 long gun at the scene, which was loaded and without its safety secured. Investigators found a photo on Rafael-Sanchez’s phone of him with the rifle on the passenger side of the vehicle.
Video footage shows Ward holding “a shining object” in his hand, which Freeman said corroborates the agent’s claims that he was holding his badge in hand when he attempted to detain the pair.
Under SBI policy, agents are considered to be on duty when traveling to and from training.
“Our courts have also consistently ruled that a police officer ‘is still an officer and a policeman having authority, if not indeed the duty’ to use his authority as an officer when the circumstances require it, even when he is not working,” Freeman said. “Agent Ward had the authority to attempt to prevent Mr. Rafael-Sanchez and his companion from fleeing following their larceny of ammunition.”
