A porn-film actor who was wanted for murder has died after falling from a rocky hillside in Los Angeles, following a day-long stand-off with the police.

Officers had tried to talk Stephen Hill into surrendering after he fled to the edge of the hill, clutching a sword and threatening to kill himself.

Police said he fell 40ft (13m) after being hit by a non-lethal munition.

Hill, 34, was suspected of killing a colleague with a samurai sword.

About a week ago, he had been told he was being fired from a DVD production house which specialises in pornography.

On Tuesday, several people were attacked at the firm and one died.

Image caption Hill had been sacked from the porn company he worked for

Hill, whose screen name was Steve Driver, was accused of attacking colleagues with a samurai sword that the production house used as a prop.

He fled the scene and evaded capture for days, but was surrounded by police marksmen on a rocky hillside on the outskirts of Los Angeles on Saturday.

Perched on the edge of a cliff for some eight hours, he was apparently threatening to kill himself with a sword.

Officers eventually tried to subdue Mr Hill with what the police say was a "less than lethal munition", but he fell and later died.