'He was running with Tasers in his back': Police shoot man dead inside Pilbara shopping centre
A man has been shot dead by police inside a Pilbara shopping centre after going on a stabbing rampage.
A witness said the man, believed to be in his 30s and wearing a high-vis uniform, ran through South Hedland Square shopping centre around 10am with Tasers in his back.
"I couldn’t believe what I was seeing," the shop employee said.
“He was running pretty fast with Tasers in his back, I don’t know how many Tasers he had in his back, it looked like a lot.
“He pushed one of the police officers on the ground and I think he was about to lunge at another one of the police with the knife, that’s what it looked like to me.
“Police were shouting, 'Stop drop, stop drop, stop drop', screaming at him just to drop the knife, it was a big knife, a big knife."
The witness said the man was shot three times in front of horrified shoppers.
He claimed five to seven people had been attacked by the man outside McDonald's and inside the shopping centre, before the rampage came to an end.
Police urged the public to avoid the centre on Throssell Road while they situation unfolded and later confirmed in a statement the man had died, while several others were injured.
"A number of people have received injuries and are currently being treated at Hedland Health Campus," the statement said.
"Police will investigate the circumstances surrounding how these people received the injuries.
"As per normal protocols, Major Crime Division and Professional Standards Division will investigate the circumstances surrounding the police shooting."
Officers had been called to the centre just before 10am on Friday on reports of an armed offender and St John Ambulance and extra police flocked to the scene after the shooting.
South Hedland Square is the only shopping centre in South Hedland, which is about 15 kilometres from Port Hedland in the state's Pilbara region.
Owners Charter Hall confirmed the centre had been closed due to the incident and was now a crime scene.
"We are not able to make any further comments at this stage," Rachael Cowper, head of business improvement and marketing retail, said.
"We would like to send our best wishes to those people that have been injured as a result of this terrible incident."
Police are yet to confirm the identity of the man.