The 36-year-old man killed by Edinburg police in late September sustained multiple, “distant” type gunshot wounds to his face, torso and extremities, according to a Texas Attorney General custodial death report filed Wednesday by the department.
The filing, which comes a month after the Sept. 27 shooting of Leeroy Villarreal, said he was shot by officers using a handgun and a “rifle/shotgun.”
The shooting occurred at 2817 E. Rogers Road that day after Edinburg police were called for a possibly intoxicated man driving recklessly by a nearby school.
At a news conference, police chief Jaime Ayala told media Villarreal’s death was a “classic case of suicide by cop” and said the late man’s girlfriend told police that he owned a handgun, but that she was not sure he had a gun with him at the time.
Villarreal’s mother, however, pushed back on the chief’s “suicide by cop” claim at a recent Edinburg City Council meeting.
“My son was reckless driving and he got the death penalty for that,” Villarreal said during public comments. “He was shot in the back.”
She told the council and mayor that she was there that day and he was doing donuts in his truck on his in-law’s property where he lived.
“They shot him over 30 times,” she said.
After Villarreal was killed, police said at the time they learned he was unarmed and instead had an object.
On Thursday, through a city spokesperson, police declined to say what that object is or to say how many officers fired their weapons or how many shots were fired, citing an ongoing internal affairs investigation.
“They even fired at the house and front where six bullets were recovered and there was people in there trapped,” she said.
Villarreal’s mother also said the police shouldn’t be getting paid “for what they did” and that they should have stopped at the first round, but instead they continued.
She demanded a thorough investigation because she said she knows what happened and because she is also investigating.
“I’m a mother. He’s my first born,” she said. “My son was given the death penalty. He didn’t have a trial or jury.”
THE REPORT
In addition to revealing Villarreal’s wounds, and that a “rifle/shotgun” was fired in addition to a “handgun,” the report said that he did not display or use weapons.
While Ayala, the chief, told the news media that Villarreal was possibly intoxicated, the report filed by Edinburg police said that’s unknown.
It also said it’s unknown whether Villarreal made suicidal statements or whether he had mental health problems.
Police said in the report that Villarreal did verbally threaten officers, but never tried to gain an officers’ weapon. However, police also said they were unable to communicate with him and that his girlfriend said he “had a surprise” for police.
“Information was relayed to the police officers on scene and to responding police officers that the male suspect stated that ‘he had a surprise for the police.’ Information was also relayed to the police officers on scene that the male suspect possibly had a firearm (handgun) in his possession.”
The report does not say where that information came from, but Ayala previously attributed this information to Villarreal’s girlfriend.
Police said in the report that at one point Villarreal “pointed an object at officers on scene which was believed to be a firearm.”
During the incident in which Villarreal had been barricaded in his truck, critical incident negotiators attempted to communicate with him for about 50 minutes with no response or compliance, according to the report.
“At approximately 1:22 p.m., the male suspect exited the vehicle extending his arms and pointing an object resembling and perceived to be a handgun at the officers on scene as he ran in their direction in an aggressive manner,” the report stated.
This is when “the officers” involved fired “to stop the threat.”
At the news conference following the shooting, Ayala had said that Villarreal approached the officers aggressively while holding a makeshift shield.
The custodial report does not mention the makeshift shield nor does it name the officers or provide a number for the amount of officers who fired their weapons.
The chief previously said they would be placed on paid administrative leave as standard protocol.
The Texas Rangers are conducting the criminal side of the investigation.
Had Villarreal survived, he would have been charged with reckless driving and aggravated assault on a police officer.
