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Man shot by San Antonio police officers dies in custody

BCSO authorities said Jose Luis Iruegas was removed from life support Sunday night, more than three weeks after officers shot him.

SAN ANTONIO — A 44-year-old man who was shot by San Antonio police officers responding to a west-side disturbance earlier this month has died.

Officials with the Bexar County Sheriff's Office said Jose Luis Iruegas was removed from life-support on Sunday night. He was in critical condition after being shot multiple times by officers who thought he was wielding a pistol on the evening of Jan. 4.

Iruegas had been booked into the Bexar County jail when he passed away, charged with two counts of terroristic threat against a peace officer stemming form that confrontation. Bexar County authorities are now investigating his death.

SAPD last week released bodycam footage and a statement after officers shot and seriously injured Irugas at a west-side motel.

Authorities said he opened the door of his room and pointed a gun at officers, who opened fire. The weapon was later determined to be a BB gun, according to SAPD officials.

That night, a man had called 911 to report a person who appeared to be intoxicated and brandishing a gun near the corner strip located along the 1400 block of Culebra Road.

"I don't know if this guy's drunk or what but he's carrying a pistol and showing it off and saying, 'Who's next? Who's next?'" the caller said. 

That witness added that the man had gone back to the motel room.

The video released by SAPD then shows officers arriving at the scene. One approached the second-floor room, knocking and identifying himself as police before walking down the balcony away from the room. The other officer remained in the parking lot on the first floor. 

Body camera footage shows the man opening the door with what appears to be a pistol in his hand. Officers are heard ordering him to drop it before quickly opening fire. 

A barrage of about 15 gunshots can be heard in the video.

Surveillance footage from the motel shows the man pointing his weapon at the officer who was upstairs before that officer shot at him. Only a few seconds elapsed between the door opening and the gunshots. 

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