Six Des Plaines police officers have been placed on administrative leave, including the officer who fatally shot a “violent” man wielding an electric hedge trimmer during a confrontation earlier this month in the northwest suburb, police announced Thursday.
The fatal shooting of Ayham Babidi, 21, happened Sept. 9 about 2:30 p.m. at 2047 E. Touhy Ave.
In a Thursday statement, the Des Plaines Police Department said it placed six officers on temporary paid administrative leave, a standard procedure in this type of use-of-force investigation.
Only one of the officers was directly involved in the shooting, while the others were at the scene or responded immediately afterward, according to the statement. Police added that administrative leave does not reflect wrongdoing but allows freedom for the investigation to progress as quickly as possible. The statement indicated that the investigation is ongoing.
Des Plaines police said earlier that an officer didn’t activate his body camera before shooting Babidi, who had a hedge trimmer on his front lawn during the encounter.
According to police, Babidi followed the officer, ignoring commands to drop the tool before the officer fired three shots.
Babidi was then taken to a local hospital where he later died, according to police.
Des Plaines police explained the officer didn’t have time to turn on his body camera “due to the rapid escalation of the incident.”
Officer dashcam and residential video footage from nearby homes that captured the shooting will be released “as soon as it no longer compromises the active investigation,” police said.