Ex-South Gate City Manager Dies a Week After Police Shooting

A former city manager of South Gate and Hawthorne died Monday from a gunshot wound to the upper body he sustained Nov. 15 during a confrontation with Riverside police, authorities said.

Todd Webster Argow, 53, was reportedly suicidal, and when confronted by police he ignored commands to drop his shotgun and instead aimed the weapon at an officer, said Sgt. Leon Phillips of the Riverside Police Department.

Phillips said Argow apparently was trying to provoke officers into killing him.

Police responded to a call about 6:50 p.m. that night from Argow’s roommate who said he had waved a gun at her during an argument. She said she then left the house.

Officers then surrounded the house in the 5200 block of Old Mill Street, where Argow was spotted inside. An officer spoke to Argow on the phone for about 20 minutes, trying to persuade him to exit the home and relinquish his weapons, Phillips said.

Argow left the house but ignored police orders to drop his shotgun. Instead, he raised the gun to his shoulder and aimed it at an officer across the street, Phillips said.

An officer fired shots at Argow, one of which struck him in the chest, Phillips said. He was taken to Riverside Community Hospital.

Argow reportedly was upset over a recent minor traffic accident and a theft from his driveway, Phillips said. Alcohol also may have been a factor, he said.

Argow was South Gate city manager in the early 1990s and left that post to work as Hawthorne city manager.

He held the job for six months in 1995, before he was fired by the City Council for not effectively eliminating the city’s budget deficit.