Police officers shot dead a knife-wielding man in a hail of bullets less than a mile from the Republican National Convention venue in Milwaukee.
Five officers patrolling on bicycles reportedly opened fire after the man turned to them with the blade.
It came hours before Trump and his running mate J.D. Vance were due to hear speeches by Republican luminaries at the convention arena.
Police from Columbus, Ohio, were involved in the shooting. The officers were on assignment in Milwaukee to help with the beefed-up security for the event after the assassination attempt on Donald Trump on Saturday.
The shooting happened outside the perimeter policed by the Secret Service.
Initial reports suggested the dead man was homeless, had been involved in a fight with another homeless man, and was a user of crack cocaine.
Witnesses said the man was known by the nickname ‘Jehovah’.
A police officer has shot and killed an individual a mile away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee
He lived in an encampment of dozens of homeless people.
Shelly Sarasin, director of the Street Angels group, told the Columbus Dispatch: ‘He was a person. He was human. This is more trauma on top of trauma for those who knew him and still live here.’
The shooting happened as the theme of the day at the convention was ‘Make America Safe Once Again’.
It took place near a social services building in the early afternoon. More than 100 cops swarmed the scene near North 14th and West Vliet Streets.
Witnesses told TMJ4 the officers shot the man in the back while he was walking across the street from a homeless encampment where he lived.
It followed a fight between two men who were armed with knives.
The cop from Columbus, Ohio , who fatally shot the man was in the city to help with the beefed-up security for the event after the assassination attempt on Donald Trump on Saturday
Columbus Police reportedly provided a ‘Police Dialogue Team’ of 13 officers to Milwaukee for the Convention.
The dialogue team, who wear light blue vests, were seen walking with protesters on Monday near the Convention center.
Their aim is to police protests while avoiding conflict. It was not clear if the officer involved in the shooting was from that team.
The shooting is not believed to be connected to the Convention, but law enforcement is at a heightened state of alert in the aftermath of Trump’s shooting.
More than 4,000 officers from around the country are in Milwaukee for the Convention this week.
More than 100 cops swarmed the scene near North 14th and West Vliet Streets outside of the security perimeter after the shots rang out
Cops cordoned off the area near the shooting which sparked a huge law enforcement response
More than 50,000 people are descending on Milwaukee for the event.
It comes days after a would-be assassin shot Trump in ear during his rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The gunman, Thomas Crooks, 20, was shot dead by Secret Service. One rally attendee is deceased and others are injured.
Less than 24 hours after the shooting Trump decided he would still be going full steam ahead to Milwaukee for the Convention.
He will end the week as the official GOP presidential nominee.
The 2024 GOP Convention is at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.
Fiserv Forum opened in 2018 and is the home of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA basketball team and the college basketball team the Golden Eagles of Marquette University.
The arena has a capacity of about 18,000 when set up for concerts.
U.S. Secret Service requires that protesters and others who intend to demonstrate at the Convention register and sign-up for the Demonstration Speakers Platform and Parade Route.
Those registered are required to remain in the designated First Amendment zone.
The Parade Route allows groups to move and march to express their views, while the Speakers Platform gives demonstrators a time slot for an opportunity to make remarks and speeches about their cause.
The platform and parade route are ‘both within sight and sound access of the Republican National Convention,’ according to USSS.
RNC Chairman Michael Whatley told Fox News Sunday after the shooting the day prior that ‘in terms of the physical sense, the arena is set. The security is here’
RNC Chairman Michael Whatley told Fox News Sunday that ‘in terms of the physical sense, the arena is set. The security is here.’
‘We feel very comfortable that we’re working with the Secret Service, we’re working with 40 different law enforcement agencies in terms of what that security is going to look like,’ he added.
During a press conference on Sunday, USSS said ‘we’re not completing any changes to our operational security plans for this event.’
‘We’re confident in the plans that we have and we are moving forward with those plans,’ they added.