After an all-night manhunt, three deputies shot and killed an armed man in Sunnyvale, California early in the morning on Thursday, October 6, 2011. The deputies found the man, Shareef Allman, 47, in a driveway. According to Laurie Smith, Santa Clara Country Sheriff, Allman had exposed his firearm in a dangerous and threatening manner, and the deputies fired. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

His identity was later confirmed by fingerprints by the Santa Clara County coroner’s office. It was the end to an ordeal that lasted just over 24 hours. At four in the morning on Wednesday, Allman, who worked at the Permanente Plant owned by Lehigh Southwest Cement Company, went to work to attend a meeting about safety.

He was reported to leave the meeting, and returned with a handgun and rifle. He opened fire, wounding six people, and killing three. After the incident, Allman left the scene, and authorities began looking for him. Shortly thereafter, a woman in Cupertino reported a carjacking, and her description of the carjacker matched Allman.

During the hunt, police found Allman’s car at a gas station. They found two assault rifles, a shotgun, and a handgun. They also have footage of him walking away from the gas station with a rifle. The search lasted all night. At 7:30 a.m. the next morning, three deputies found Allman crouching behind a car.

Allman’s coworkers described him as a disgruntled employee. According to them, Allman had recently been switched to the night shift, and was upset. They also said he often reported late for work and had more accidents than other employees. “He thought everybody was after him. He wasn’t thinking no more,” Mike Ambrosio said in a San Jose Mercury News interview.

Ambrosio was shot in the right arm. Close friends were surprised to learn that the shooter was Allman. Brandon Powell had seen Allman recently, when Allman showed him new additions to his gun collection, including an AK-47. When he asked Allman why he purchased the new guns, he said Allman told him there was some trouble at work.

“We started laughing, so I didn’t think he was serious. He wouldn’t hurt nobody. He’s not that type of person. He must’ve snapped,” said Powell. Allman had also visited union representative Bill Hoyt on September 30. Allman said he felt he was being treated unfairly at work. “He told me he had gotten a suspension, and didn’t feel that the punishment fit the crime.

But he was fine, and didn’t seem angry, we talked and joked around. There was nothing weird about him,” said Hoyt. The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety is handling the investigation.

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About the author

Mei Tsai
I am currently a fourth-year student at the University of Oregon double majoring in Journalism and Chinese. I'm interested in a lot of things, sometimes all at once - I've been told I have attention span of a five year old. If you've got an interesting opinion, story, experience, hobby, idea - I'm all ears!

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