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L.A. County coroner identifies man killed by Gardena police

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A man shot and killed by Gardena police officers was identified Monday as 34-year-old Ricardo Diaz-Zeferino.

Diaz-Zeferino, whose city of residence was not immediately available, was shot about 2:30 a.m., when officers responded to a robbery call at a drug store in the 15700 block of Western Avenue, the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department said.

En route to the scene of the robbery, which police were told involved a bicycle, an officer in the 1600 block of Redondo Beach Boulevard spotted two men on bicycles coming from the direction of the robbery.

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He tried to detain the men but one acted “strangely” and did not follow orders, said sheriff’s Deputy Lilian Peck.

Soon other officers arrived. So did Diaz-Zeferino, who authorities said stepped between officers and the two detainees. Instead of complying with officers’ commands, he reached for his waistband area and advanced toward the officers, Peck said in a written statement.

Several officers, believing Diaz-Zeferino was about to shoot them, fired, striking him in the upper body. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

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One of the other two men also was shot and taken to a hospital, where he was listed in stable condition, Peck said.

No officers were injured.

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jean.merl@latimes.com

Twitter: @jeanmerl

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