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Police shoot fleeing robber to death
By Phillip W. Browne
Staff Writer
A knife-wielding man who robbed an Agoura Hills gas station died in a volley of police gunfire early Monday after authorities chased him over rain-slick freeways to Santa Monica.
The chase ended about 6 a.m. near Pico and Lincoln boulevards, where the suspect stopped and then backed the car into a patrol car, authorities said. Nicholas Hans Killinger, 23, of Malibu was hit several times and was pronounced dead about 7 a.m. at Santa Monica UCLA Medical Center.
"At the termination of the pursuit, when they were trying to take the suspect into custody ... the suspect opted to drive in reverse toward the officers," said LAPD Lt. Art Miller.
Police say Killinger was armed with a knife when he robbed the Mobil station at 4950 Reyes Adobe Road, Agoura Hills, about 4:30 a.m.
"He bound the clerk's hand with a zip tie and told him to get on the ground," said Sgt. Kenneth Scheurn of the Malibu-Lost Hills sheriff's station. "He got about $180 in cash and fled."
Sheriff's deputies spotted the man's vehicle along the southbound Ventura Freeway at Parkway Calabasas and gave chase, Scheurn said. The California Highway Patrol took over the chase at Laurel Canyon Boulevard.
As light rain blanketed Los Angeles County, Killinger raced along freeways at more than 80 mph. The robber made U-turns on the freeway, speeding in the opposite direction of traffic.
The chase zigzagged into downtown Los Angeles, East L.A. and Hollywood before ending up on the westbound Santa Monica Freeway. The chase wound through city streets into Santa Monica, when the robber again sped toward oncoming traffic and, at one point, drove through the Third Street Promenade pedestrian mall.
The Los Angeles and Santa Monica police departments will investigate the officer-involved shooting, officials said.
Phillip W. Browne, (818) 713-3707 phillip.browne@dailynews.com
