Arizona Watcher
Multiple 911 callers reported a man was assaulting his ex‑wife and children with a shovel and damaging vehicles near Elliot and Mountain roads in east Mesa; officers were dispatched around 7:09 p.m.
Neighbors watched and several tried to intervene before officers arrived; witnesses told dispatchers the man was attacking family members and destroying nearby vehicles.
When an officer reached the scene he encountered the man carrying an ax, issued verbal commands and then fired; police did not specify the suspect’s actions just before the shooting.
Officers provided medical aid but the man was later pronounced dead at the scene; police reported no other injuries among family members or others present.
The East Valley Critical Incident Response Team is investigating the shooting with the Gilbert Police Department as lead; the officer has not been identified and no body‑cam details were released.
Authorities said callers reported the suspect might also have been armed with a firearm, shaping the initial response; police have not confirmed other weapons or publicly detailed property damage.
Mesa police later identified the deceased as 59‑year‑old Perry Forster; local reports say neighbors intervened with a baseball bat and that one police round missed and struck a parked car.
Mesa police shot and killed a man the evening of Aug. 3 after multiple 911 callers said he assaulted his ex‑wife and children with a shovel and was damaging vehicles. An officer encountered the man carrying an ax, gave verbal commands and then fired; the East Valley Critical…