Fresno police shoot, kill man who was stabbing woman

A man who was stabbing a woman repeatedly in a central Fresno apartment was shot to death by officers early Wednesday, police Chief Jerry Dyer said.

The incident happened about 1:30 a.m. at California Hotel near Weber and Thorne avenues. Dyer said officers sped to the complex after receiving multiple 911 calls about a man beating the 55-year-old woman. Callers said the woman was screaming for help.

Officers ran to an upstairs room where they could hear the disturbance, broke a window and saw the man, but did not see the woman. They broke into the room and found a woman lying on her back covered in blood with the man positioned next to her.

Dyer said officers fired a nonlethal beanbag round from a shotgun at the man, but he continued to stab the woman. Officers then fired their handguns at him.

The woman and the man both were taken to a hospital. The 55-year-old man died about 3 a.m. He was identified by the county coroner late Wednesday as Fred Perez.

The woman was in stable condition, although she sustained about 12 stab wounds to her upper torso and back.

The officers were wearing body cameras during the incident. They were placed on paid administrative leave.

This story was originally published December 30, 2015 at 8:47 AM with the headline "Fresno police shoot, kill man who was stabbing woman."