NJ man who called 911 about intruder ended up shot dead by police

Body camera footage and a 911 recording have been released as state authorities investigate the police shooting death of a U.S. Air Force veteran outside his own home after he reported an armed trespasser.

Charles Frederick Sharp, 49, of Mantua, died on Sept. 14, about an hour after he had called police at 1:30 a.m., according to the Office of the Attorney General on Wednesday.

Officers responded to Sharp’s residence on Elm Avenue, where Sharp had said two people were on his property, including at least one armed with a gun.

During the recorded call, he tells a dispatcher that he has a “45,” left to him by his grandfather, adding “I don’t know how legal it is,” and that he threw a couple of firecrackers at the two people, but that they came back and were “looking through the fence.”

He later says “maybe that’s not the professional thing to do,” adding that he also saw a woman outside.

Sharp is still on the line with the dispatcher as responding officers can be heard in the background, yelling “he’s got a gun!”

The dispatcher asks “Are you talking with my officers,” just before a number of shots are heard.

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A detailed replica of a .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun was found near Sharp, state prosecutors said — a gun also is seen lying near his body in the body camera footage.

The video clip, just under 2 minutes and 30 seconds long, shows a barefoot man later identified as Sharp outside the home, as one of the officers exits his patrol vehicle and fires multiple shots from his own firearm, hitting Sharp.

After Sharp falls to the ground, a few officers approach. One officer asks if it’s the homeowner, to which the unidentified officer who shot says “I don’t know - the guy came out, pointed a gun.”

“Pointed the gun, I thought he was going to f****ing shot me, dude” the officer says as he gets an emergency first aid kit out from his police cruiser.

Sharp was taken to Jefferson Washington Township Hospital, where he was pronounced dead before 3 a.m.

He was a 1991 graduate of Clearview Regional High School, before serving in the U.S. Air Force for over 21 years with the 177th Fighter Wing, according to his obituary.

This past summer, a U.S. Army veteran was shot and killed by Newton Police, after a relative had called 911 reporting his erratic behavior.

Gulia Dale was shot outside his own home in July, after holding up a gun. That incident also has been under review by the Office of the Attorney General.