Security Guard Kills Man Who Brandished Ax

A private security guard on Tuesday fatally shot a man who allegedly threatened to kill him with an ax as half a dozen other stunned guards looked on.

The name of dead man was withheld pending notification of relatives. The man died at the scene of the 7:30 a.m. shooting in the parking lot of Bona Fide Security, Anaheim Police Sgt. Chet Barry said.

The guard, Michael Fraire, 27, was not arrested, but Barry said an investigation was continuing. “We haven’t ruled on it one way or the other,” Barry said. But, he said, “I don’t see anything other than self-defense right now.”

Barry said the dead man was angry that his car had been towed, and he believed Bona Fide Security responsible.

Witnesses told police that the man drove up to the security company’s headquarters in the 1200 block of East Lincoln Avenue, parked his car in the lot and got out, yelling angrily, Barry said. The car he drove belonged to a close friend who died about a week ago, Barry said.

The man’s car had been towed away in Fullerton and was locked up in a nearby towing yard. It was not immediately clear why it had been towed. “He was evidently disgruntled about the impound,” Barry said.

After the man climbed out of the car, he picked up a 2-foot-long camping ax and began walking toward the company office, screaming profanities along the way, Barry and witnesses said.

“He wanted to know who impounded his car,” Barry said.

Fraire was inside the office doing paperwork when he heard the commotion, said Scott Myers, the security firm’s general manager. Fraire, the only guard on duty authorized to carry a handgun, went outside and saw the man approaching the other guards menacingly, Myers said.

Fraire tried to hold off the man while yelling to the other guards to get away.

As his co-workers backed off to safety, Fraire stood his ground and attempted to talk the man into putting the ax down, Myers and police said. At that point, Barry said, he kept his handgun in his holster. But the man continued to walk toward Fraire, despite warnings, and raised the ax above his right shoulder.

“He said, ‘Go ahead and shoot me,’ ” Barry said.

When the man got within 10 feet of Fraire, the guard pulled out his service revolver and aimed it. The man continued advancing to within 6 feet, and Fraire shot him twice in the chest, Barry said.

Myers said his company is launching its own investigation into the shooting but has tentatively ruled that Fraire acted in self-defense. “There were about a half-dozen other people there,” he said. “It’s pretty substantiated what happened.”