The Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office identified the individual who was fatally shot by Richmond police on Feb. 4, 2025 as 51-year-old Jose Mendez Rios.
Rios, described as a transient without a known previous address, was fatally shot while weilding what officers believed was a knife following a 30-minute standoff. The object was later revealed to be a black knife sheath.
The incident unfolded at about 8:13 p.m. on the Union Pacific Railroad right of way just west of the 300 block of Carlson Blvd, near the Pullman Point Apartments. The RPD was trying to arrest the suspect on a felony domestic violence warrant, but the suspect refused leading to the standoff.
Police said Rios ignored multiple commands to drop the object and that the officer-involved shooting occurred after he “charged at the officers with the object in his hand while raising it in a threatening manner.”
Per legal protocol, the California Department of Justice is conducting an independent investigation into the incident. The RPD said it would fully cooperate with that investigation.