A tense confrontation in Akron’s Ellet neighborhood on November 11 ended with a 36-year-old man hospitalized after police opened fire following multiple 911 reports of an armed threat outside a local bar. The incident took place at Karam’s Lounge shortly after 9 p.m., when employees and patrons noticed the man behaving erratically inside the establishment.

Witnesses told police the man appeared intoxicated, unsteady, and increasingly agitated before staff asked him to leave. After being removed, his behavior reportedly escalated in the parking lot. Several callers claimed he had what appeared to be a gun and was pointing it toward the bar’s windows while threatening to shoot, prompting staff members to lock the doors and take cover.

Akron police officers arrived within minutes. One officer made contact with the man outside the lounge, issuing repeated commands to show his hands and get on the ground. According to officials, the man seemed confused and only partially complied, then moved his hands toward his jacket—an action the officer interpreted as a potential attempt to draw a weapon.

Roughly 20 seconds after initiating contact, the officer opened fire, striking the man multiple times. Officers immediately rendered first aid until paramedics arrived. The man was transported to a nearby hospital with serious injuries.

In the aftermath, Akron police searched the man but did not recover a firearm, raising new questions about the accuracy of the initial 911 reports and the sequence of events that unfolded. Investigators are now working to determine whether the object seen by witnesses was a weapon, something resembling one, or the result of misinterpretation during a chaotic moment.

The shooting remains under active investigation as authorities review body-camera footage, eyewitness accounts, and the emergency calls that led officers to believe they were responding to an imminent threat.