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CALUMET CITY | Police said they shot and killed a Chicago man Monday after he physically beat and severely injured two officers, and refused to submit after twice being hit with a stun gun.
Prince Alim Bantu Akbar, 32, whose last known address was the 500 block of South State Street, in Chicago, was shot twice in the 15700 block of Wentworth Avenue. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead, Calumet City Police Chief Edward Gilmore said.
The incident began about 12:30 p.m. when police received a series of three calls about a suspicious man who appeared to be "off his medication," Gilmore said.
The first caller reported that the man who was "yelling and screaming" had entered the Thornton Fractional Center for Science and Technology, a District 215 facility at 1605 S. Wentworth Ave., which is shared by students of both TF North and South high schools. A second caller reported that the man was out in the street waving, and the third caller said Akbar had entered the building asked to use a phone, offered to pay for the call and then left, Gilmore said.
School officials could not be reached Monday for comment.
Shortly before 1 p.m., a female officer arrived to find Akbar, who stood 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighed 265 pounds, outside a residence at 1579 S. Wentworth Ave., which falls between 166th and 167th streets.
According to witness statements, Akbar attacked the female officer almost immediately after she exited her car, punching her in the face. A second officer arrived, and Akbar attacked him as well, punching him in the face, Gilmore said.
"Both were knocked down and severely injured," Gilmore said. "This was not a one-punch fight. These officers sustained some substantial physical damage to their faces."
Gilmore said the officers attempted to use nonlethal force, twice striking Ackbar with a Taser.
The male officer was knocked into a semiconscious state, Gilmore said. When he "came to and rose to a prone position, he saw the female officer being beaten unmercifully. He drew his weapon and fired two shots, striking the offender," Gilmore said.
The officers were transported to local hospitals with moderate to severe injuries to their faces, including cuts, bruises and broken bones. Gilmore said the female officer will mark her two-year anniversary on the force next month. The male officer is a 15-year veteran.
The Cook County state's attorney's office and Illinois State Police are investigating the shooting.
Gilmore said he is not sure what Ackbar was doing in Calumet City, "but I wish he was somewhere else. He dictated the circumstances."