Recently unveiled body camera and surveillance videos capture the intense moments when a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy was stabbed mere seconds after responding to a report of an armed individual. In swift response, deputies discharged their firearms, resulting in the suspect’s death.
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department made public the body camera and surveillance footage from the incident on June 20. This confrontation took place in a parking lot in Lancaster and involved a deputy who was injured and 23-year-old Robert Castro, who sustained fatal injuries. Castro succumbed to the gunshots following the encounter.
The chain of events unfolded when a 911 call alerted the authorities to a man brandishing multiple knives and threatening public safety.
“Hey, I just want to make a report of a guy with some knives … swinging them in public,” the concerned caller informed the dispatcher, highlighting the imminent danger.
Footage from the body camera released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department shows 23-year-old Robert Castro mere moments before he allegedly attacked a sheriff’s deputy on June 20 in Lancaster, California. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)
The caller said Castro appeared to be “fighting with someone” while carrying a large knife and expressed concern after seeing him look toward a woman walking to a nearby bus stop.
Surveillance video shows deputies arriving with emergency lights activated as Castro walked across the parking lot while still armed.
According to the sheriff’s department, Castro suddenly changed direction before the first deputy’s patrol vehicle had come to a stop, rushed toward the deputy, pulled a knife and stabbed him.
A still image from deputy body camera footage released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department shows Robert Castro approaching an arriving deputy while holding what investigators say was one of three knives recovered. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)
The wounded deputy then drew his service weapon and opened fire.
The deputy activated his body camera after firing his weapon, but the camera’s pre-event recording feature captured the 60 seconds leading up to the stabbing without audio.
A second deputy’s body camera captured him arriving as the first deputy fired his weapon.
Surveillance video released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department shows deputies arriving before investigators say Robert Castro suddenly charged toward an arriving deputy and stabbed him. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)
The video shows Castro on the ground as the deputy checked on his wounded colleague. When Castro moved one of his hands, the deputy repeatedly yelled, “Stop reaching,” before opening fire again.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department released images of two knives recovered after authorities say 23-year-old Robert Castro stabbed a sheriff’s deputy during a June 20 confrontation in Lancaster, Calif. (Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department)
Deputies rendered medical aid to Castro until Los Angeles County Fire Department personnel arrived. Castro was transported to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Authorities said Castro was armed with three knives, including the one investigators say he used to stab the deputy.
The wounded deputy was hospitalized for treatment. No other deputies or civilians were injured.
The California Department of Justice is investigating the shooting as required under state law for officer-involved fatalities.
The sheriff’s department said it released the video before the investigation was complete “in the interest of transparency with the community we serve.”