Suspect Holding Replica Gun Is Killed by Officer : Shooting: Witnesses say the Ventura man, 21, was pointing the fake weapon at three residents and demanding money.

A Ventura police officer shot and killed a 21-year-old man accused of robbing Ventura Avenue residents with a replica handgun, officials said, although investigators late Sunday still had not determined what prompted the fatal encounter.

James Anthony Zendejas of Ventura approached three men in the driveway of their El Medio Street home about midnight Saturday and demanded money with an object that resembled a pistol, police and witnesses said.

He was shot by Officer Tim Turner, who answered an emergency 911 call from a frightened relative, police said. But investigators on Sunday could not say if Zendejas had pointed the weapon at Turner or if the officer believed the lives of the robbery victims were in danger.

Sgt. Ted Prell said the incident began at 11:57 p.m. with the emergency call.

“The caller said the subject was holding a gun to his father’s head and demanding money,” Prell said. “The officer got out there one minute later and saw the subject pointing a small-caliber handgun in the direction of three male victims.”

Turner shot Zendejas once with a shotgun, the sergeant said. Zendejas was transported to Ventura County Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead about 2:30 a.m. Sunday.

Investigators later determined that the weapon was a “realistic replica” of a small-caliber handgun. Zendejas’ mother said the object was a cigarette lighter designed to look like a small firearm.

A senior deputy coroner said Zendejas was drunk at the time of the shooting.

Three men told police that Zendejas threatened them with what they thought was a gun, investigators said. Earlier in the evening, he robbed some other residents along El Medio Street, they said.

The robbery victims were not available for comment Sunday, but they told relatives about the frightening moments that preceded the police shooting.

“The man told my dad to give him money, and my dad said, ‘No,’ ” reported Rocio Robles, whose husband was also among the intended holdup victims. “When I saw him pointing the gun at my father, I got scared.”

She said she was hiding inside the house with two small children when she heard the shotgun blast.

“I was thinking he (Zendejas) had shot my husband or my father,” she said later in her living room, not far from the shooting scene.

Zendejas died from a single shotgun wound to the stomach, the coroner’s office said.

The shooting victim’s mother, Pam Zendejas, said her son had never been in trouble and she doubted that he would rob anyone.

“I don’t know what happened,” she said, weeping. “I’ve heard six different stories. All I know is he’s not here anymore.”

The mother said her son worked for a local construction company and had just been paid.

“He would never do anything like that,” she said of the reported holdup. “Supposedly he had as much as $400 in his pocket. There’s no reason for this. He could be starving, and he wouldn’t take something from anybody. Something’s got to be wrong.”

Friends who gathered outside the Zendejas home near Ventura College on Sunday also said Zendejas was not likely to steal or commit other crimes. They described him as a generous and hard-working Ventura High School graduate who liked to draw and play sports.

“I don’t think Jimmy had any reason to hold up anybody,” said James Fletcher, who said he had known Zendejas for years. “He never carried a weapon.”

Turner will remain on active duty while the investigation continues, Prell said.

The fatal shooting is the ninth by a Ventura County law enforcement officer in the past six years.

In addition to his mother, Zendejas is survived by two older brothers, a younger brother and a sister, relatives said. He grew up in the Ventura Avenue area and was visiting friends before he was shot, according to friends.

“He was 21,” said Zendejas’ sister, Nicole. “No one’s life ends at that age.”