A St. Petersburg, Fla. man was shot dead by police on Sunday after he reportedly rushed them while doused in gasoline and holding a pair of scissors.
Police responded to the home of Arthur Dixon, 43, after his mother called to report that he'd poured gasoline on himself and lit a cigarette, according to the Tampa Bay Times. He turned to his mom, who was staying with him at the time, and threatened to set himself on fire.
When cops arrived, Dixon was inside the house, guarded by his pit bull named Chico. Officers negotiated with him for more than an hour, but he became "belligerent and threatening," cops told the paper.
At 7:30 p.m., Dixon fled to his back yard, where two officers were stationed. He held a pair of scissors in his hand and police say he raised them threateningly, Fox 13 reports. The cops demanded that he drop the scissors, but he refused, so they fired at him.
It's unclear how many shots were fired, but Dixon was hit in the upper torso and later died of his injuries.
"Scissors are a deadly weapon," St. Petersburg police spokesman Mike Puetz told the Tampa Bay Times. "They can cause great harm. They can be just as dangerous as a knife."
Police said they couldn't use a Taser to subdue Dixon because sparks could ignite the gasoline on his body and nearby, WTSP reports. Dixon is reportedly a former landscaper who suffered a brain injury and became disabled.
The two officers who fired shots were placed on administrative leave pending an investigation, as is the norm for most officer-involved shootings.