Review finds Anchorage officers legally justified in use of deadly force against robbery suspect

The state Office of Special Prosecutions has concluded two officers were legally justified in using deadly force against a robbery suspect who came at them wielding hatchets.

Assistant Attorney General Robert Henderson wrote in his review of the shooting that criminal charges against Anchorage police officers Cole Grigg and Bart Filipowicz are inappropriate.

Benjamin Zeckovic, 23, shoplifted hatchets and axes from a Home Depot store near Northway Mall just before 6:30 p.m. July 12 and assaulted a loss-prevention employee, police said at that time. When police units arrived, Zeckovic threw some of the implements at officers and then advanced on them wielding a hatchet in each hand, according to the review.

The officers fired on Zeckovic, sending him to a hospital with injuries that proved fatal. Henderson wrote that Zeckovic was shot twice.

[Charges: Man fatally shot by police threatened officers in 911 call days before his death]

According to the review, store employees said a man stole several hatchets and axes from the store. They said he exited out the back of the store and started brandishing the items and yelling.

Officer Filipowicz arrived first at the store and spotted an agitated Zeckovic. A dashboard camera in the officer's vehicle captured Zeckovic throw a hatchet at the car. Filipowicz called for backup and requested "less-than-lethal munitions," according to the review.

In the midst of the request, three more officers arrived and formed a semicircle around Zeckovic with their vehicles. The review says the vehicles stopped 100 feet from him.

"As the officers were exiting their patrol vehicles Zeckovic threw a second hatchet at the officers. Two officers had to move out of the way to avoid being struck," the review says.

Zeckovic reportedly came at the officers with a hatchet in each hand, and he ignored commands to stop. The two fatal shots were fired and he dropped to the ground.

Henderson wrote in the review that Zeckovic had a warrant out for his arrest at the time of the shooting, which was unknown to the officers. The prosecutor said the information was relevant to Zeckovic's state of mind.

The arrest warrant related to a 911 call Zeckovic made just days before his death in which he expressed suicidal thoughts and threatened police.

"At the time that Officer Grigg made the decision to fire his weapon, Zeckovic had demonstrated that he was attempting to seriously injure or kill the officers," Henderson wrote in his conclusion, adding both officers told investigators they fired their weapons to protect themselves and other officers.