University of Missouri Police officer discharges weapon while responding to incident; investigation shows man shot himself

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia Police Department is investigating an incident where a University of Missouri Police officer discharged his weapon.

Just before 9:30 Friday night, MUPD responded to a potential medical incident in a parking lot south of Hearnes Center on the University of Missouri campus.

According to a news release, an officer went up to a car where he saw a man holding a gun. When asked to put down the gun, the 47-year-old man fired it instead. Police determined he shot and killed himself. However, the officer did fire a shot before he knew.

Since the officer discharged his gun, CPD is taking over the investigation. Under MUPD policy, the officer has been placed on administrative leave and the department is conducting a parallel investigation.