An armed man who was shot by Hilliard police while they were about to arrest him has been identified and is facing additional charges from the incident.
At around 8:10 p.m. Sept. 16, two police officers
were serving a misdemeanor arrest warrant for Frank Toscano, 62, of Hilliard, at The Wendell apartments located in the 400 block of Lowell Lane. Toscano was wanted for an indecent exposure incident that happened Sept. 11 at the Giant Eagle grocery store at 4001 Britton Parkway, police said. According to the arrest warrant, Toscano allegedly exposed his private parts to an employee at the store on the early morning of Sept. 11.
When the two officers made contact with Toscano at his apartment, they asked him to take his hand from his pocket and step forward out of the doorway, according to body camera footage from the incident. At that point, Toscano pulled a gun from his pocket while he stepped back. One of the officers then struggled with Toscano over the gun while they both ordered him several times to drop it, footage shows.
One of the officers, who has been with the police division for four years, fired his weapon one time from outside the apartment and struck Toscano in his chest, the footage shows. The officers secured the gun and rendered first aid until medics from the Norwich Township Fire Department arrived. Toscano was then transported to OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital in stable condition, where police said he remains as of Sept. 17.
Hilliard police have not identified the officers, who were placed on administrative leave in accordance with division policy.
Toscano has been charged with attempted felonious assault, a second-degree felony, police said.
"While the circumstances of this incident are deeply unfortunate, we are grateful for the professionalism shown by the officers involved," Hilliard police Chief Michael Woods said in a prepared statement.
"This incident serves as a reminder of the difficult and often unpredictable nature of law enforcement. In a matter of seconds, these officers were required to transition from making an arrest to defending themselves against a deadly threat and then immediately to rendering aid."
This was Hilliard police's first officer shooting since 2011, police said.
Body camera footage shows Toscano pulling gun from pocket
Body camera footage released by Hilliard police shows the two officers arriving at Toscano's apartment to arrest him at around 8:10 p.m. Sept. 16. Toscano comes to the door and remains on the threshold while one of the officers tells him that he's under arrest.
While Toscano is talking with one of the officers, he puts his right hand into his pocket, the footage shows. The officer tells him to step out, and he immediately tries stepping back into the apartment before the two officers attempt to grab him. Toscano then pulls a handgun out of his pocket, the footage shows, while one of the officers twice yells "he's got a gun."
One of the officers fires a single shot that strikes Toscano in the chest. The officer who shot Toscano runs back to his cruiser to get medical equipment, the footage shows. Norwich Township medics arrived on scene and transported Toscano to OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital. Columbus police also arrived on scene to assist.
The shooting is being investigated by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at smeighan@dispatch.com, at ShahidMeighan on X, and at shahidthereporter.dispatch.com on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Bodycam footage shows man pulled gun before Hilliard officer shot him
