Edsaul Mendoza, 26, who was fired after shooting Thomas “TJ” Siderio, is charged with first-degree murder, third-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and possession of an instrumentality of crime.
Police said four plainclothes Task Force South officers in an unmarked car were conducting surveillance on March 1 while responding to social media posts involving a stolen gun.
Officers allege they saw two young men, including one identified as Siderio, at 18th and Barbara streets. One of them was holding a gun.
Officers drove up to the two men, stopped a few feet away and then activated the red and blue hazard lights on their unmarked vehicle, police say.
According to police, that’s when officers heard gunshots and the sound of glass breaking on the rear passenger window.
One of the officers received glass fragments in the face and eyes. Police say the bullet went through the passenger’s rear window glass, hit the interior door frame and then went through the passenger’s headrest before coming to rest on the roof of the vehicle. Krasner said it was Siderio who fired at the car.
Two of the officers got out of the vehicle and shot Siderio.
Police say Siderio was struck in the right upper back and the bullet exited his left chest.
He was rushed to the hospital and pronounced dead a short time later.
According to the grand jury presentation, Mendoza fired a total of three shots.
The first shot was fired near 18th and Barbara streets, and the second shot was fired after Siderio discarded his gun, the grand jury filing said.
That’s when Siderio stopped running and went to the ground, either because he tripped or was throwing himself to the ground, according to the presentation.
Mendoza then approached Siderio without taking cover, Krasner said, in a manner “completely inconsistent with Mendoza believing that Siderio was armed.”
At this point, the grand jury filing says, Mendoza was about 10 feet away from Siderio when he allegedly fired a third shot, killing Siderio.
A minute after the shooting, Mendoza told another officer that Siderio dropped the gun and pointed to where it was located, according to the filing.
“Therefore, when Mendoza fired the third and fatal shot, he knew that 12-year-old, 5-foot-tall, 111-pound Thomas Siderio no longer had a gun and could not harm him,” Krasner said.
“However, he shot him in the back and killed him,” Krasner continued.
Krasner said much of the evidence was based on video that has not been made public.
Court records show Mendoza surrendered Sunday and was denied bail.
A spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 said the union plans to provide a lawyer for the officer.
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
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