Oakland police kill robbery suspect after car chase

Protesters block traffic on a freeway offramp in Oakland on Wednesday, August 12, 2015. More than 50 people demonstrated, some throwing eggs and other projectiles at officers, in response to an officer involved shooting that fatally wounded a 24-year-old armed robbery suspect. (JOSH EDELSON / SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE) less Protesters block traffic on a freeway offramp in Oakland on Wednesday, August 12, 2015. More than 50 people demonstrated, some throwing eggs and other projectiles at officers, in response to an officer involved ... more Photo: Josh Edelson, JOSH EDELSON / SAN FRANCISCO CHR Photo: Josh Edelson, JOSH EDELSON / SAN FRANCISCO CHR Image 1 of / 18 Caption Close Oakland police kill robbery suspect after car chase 1 / 18 Back to Gallery

Oakland police shot and killed a 24-year-old armed robbery suspect after a car chase Wednesday that ended in a crash near downtown, authorities said.

The shooting, the third involving city police to result in a fatality this year, prompted protesters to march through downtown Wednesday night, breaking windows at a Starbucks coffee shop at Oakland City Center, blocking off-ramps of Interstate 980 near the shooting site and setting fires.

The name of the slain suspect wasn’t released. Police shot the man after he collided with a car and tried to carjack another vehicle, police said.

The man was shot by three officers when he “advanced towards the officers while holding a pistol in his hand,” said Chief Sean Whent. The 9mm semiautomatic handgun was loaded and had been reported stolen, the chief said.

The incident began about 2:40 p.m. when officers in the area of 69th Avenue and International Boulevard in East Oakland spotted a car connected to an armed robbery, authorities said.

The driver of the car sped off, leading police to the 27th Street off-ramp from Interstate 980, where he crashed into a motorist and tried to carjack a second vehicle, police said. The suspect then ran down 27th to Martin Luther King Jr. Way north of downtown and was pursued by officers.

“When the officers confronted the suspect, the suspect still had the firearm,” said police spokeswoman Officer Johnna Watson. She did not say whether the suspect had pointed or fired the gun at police.

The man died a short time later at a hospital.

The names of the officers were withheld. One is a seven-year department veteran, another has six years, and the third has been on the force for a year, Whent said.

Video: Protests After Oakland Police Officer Fatally Shoots Suspect In Armed Robbery, Attempted Carjacking

Oakland police are outfitted with body cameras, and “we do have body-worn camera footage of the event that we are reviewing,” Whent said.

The shooting is under investigation by police and the Alameda County district attorney’s office.

It was the third fatal shooting by Oakland police this year and the second in nine days.

On Aug. 3, police shot and killed sexual-assault suspect Antonio Clements, 49, on the 3800 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way, about 11 blocks north of where Wednesday’s shooting happened. Officers said Clements had shot at them with an AK-47 rifle, wounding a sergeant.

In June, police shot and killed Demouria Hogg, 30, after he allegedly reached for a gun while sitting in a car on Lake Park and Lakeshore avenues near Lake Merritt. The confrontation happened after Hogg was found passed out behind the wheel, police said.

“It’s important to point out that the Oakland Police Department has taken a number of steps over the past several years to reduce the likelihood of officer-involved shootings from occurring,” Whent said. “However, one thing we cannot control are the actions of the people that we attempt to arrest, and unfortunately, sometimes incidents like today still occur.”

Henry K. Lee is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: hlee@sfchronicle.com

Twitter: @henryklee