Livonia police shoot man who pointed gun at them outside phone store

Witness: Gunman wore bulletproof vest inside Livonia store before officer shooting

Livonia police shot an armed man wearing an apparent bulletproof vest who they say pointed the weapon at them and ignored commands.

LIVONIA, Mich. (FOX 2) - Livonia police shot a man who had pointed a weapon at them outside a cell phone repair store on Friday afternoon.

The backstory:

The 31-year-old Livonia man had entered the store acting erratically, according to police when employees called 911.

Early information indicated a possible robbery, but it may have been a mental health crisis instead.

He was wearing a bulletproof vest and allegedly pointed a gun at patrol officers before they shot him. 

Around 2:10 p.m., police were dispatched to the area after Five Mile and Middle Belt after reports of a man behaving erratically while brandishing a gun.

After being confronted by police, he allegedly ignored commands to drop his weapon.

The suspect, a 31-year-old man from Livonia, was taken to the hospital for treatment after being shot.

What is unclear at this point is, if the man fired any shots in the direction of the officers after he pointed it at them. 

A couple of customers were inside the phone store at the time and ran from the scene.

"We heard gunfire and then I saw a young lady run, frantically screaming," said Sheila Stinson, who was outside a nearby business. "I screamed out for her, are you okay come here, because she had nowhere to go, she was going in the parking lot."

A witness said she was hiding behind her car.

"And then I ran inside here, I didn't see anybody so I hid in their bathroom," she said.

Law enforcement closed a stretch of Middle Belt between Five Mile Road and Lyndon Street following the shooting.

Police at the scene of a shooting in Livonia.

The suspect's status is unclear. He was taken to the hospital and still had a pulse and is in critical condition.

The officer-involved shooting happened at a cell phone repair shop in Livonia on Friday.

Dig deeper:

Two people were also inside the store at the time of the shooting, fleeing after police became involved.

Michigan State Police are now involved, as is protocol during any shooting involving law enforcement.