NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk police officers won't face charges after a deadly exchange of gunfire with a man they were trying to arrest in June 2022, Norfolk Commonwealth's Attorney Ramin Fatehi said Friday.
Fatehi sent a letter to Virginia State Police Captain Timothy Reibel that outlined his legal conclusions, nearly a year and a half after Antonio Beekman, 41, was shot and killed in the 5500 block of Monroe Place on June 21, 2022.
Officers were trying to arrest Beekman on several charges out of Virginia Beach, including malicious wounding, use of a firearm and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The officers were identified as Brian Conn, Leroy Lewis, Joshua Jeffcoat, and Vincent Tocco.
"The officers justifiably used lethal force, because Mr. Beekman, a wanted violent-felony suspect, shot at them multiple times, putting them in reasonable fear for their lives and the safety of each other and other people," Fatehi wrote in the letter.
Fatehi also wrote that if Beekman survived, he would have sought to charge him with several counts of attempted malicious wounding, use of a firearm in the commission of that offense and possessing a firearm as a convicted violent felon.
"In returning fire, these officers acted properly to protect the public, and so there are no criminal charges to file against Officers Conn, Lewis, Tocco, and Jeffcoat," Fatehi wrote.
Beekman's arrest warrant stems from an incident that happened on May 30, 2022, at a 7-Eleven convenience store on Holland Road in Virginia Beach. Fatehi's letter states that Beekman went into the store and bought a cigar for a teenager who tried to buy one earlier but was turned away.
The clerk, who followed Beekman out to go on break, saw him give the cigar to the teenager and then told him not to do that.
According to the letter, Beekman drove away but came back soon after, walked around the building, found the clerk still outside, and shot at him several times, wounding him in the foot and putting a bullet in his car. Beekman then left before the police got there.
Investigators were able to track down Beekman using a shell casing and credit card transaction at the store. The Virginia Beach Police Department took out felony arrest warrants, charging him with malicious wounding. At the time, he wasn't legally allowed to have a gun due to past felony convictions, including a 2001 conviction for armed robbery.
Virginia Beach police's Warrant-Fugitive Unit learned that Beekman was living in an apartment in the 5500 block of Monroe Place in Norfolk. They unsuccessfully tried to arrest him at his place of work, so they contacted and worked with the Norfolk Police Department to arrest him, which led to the shootout in June 2022. Norfolk police were warned that Beekman could be armed and dangerous, the letter said.
Fatehi also held a news conference Friday afternoon to explain the facts of the case by demonstrating body camera footage and other evidence available in the case.