Patricia Montemurri, Detroit Free Press

The Canadian man shot early Sunday by U.S. border agents after he waved what appeared to be a handgun at them on the Ambassador Bridge was actually holding "a replica of a handgun," authorities said late Sunday.

Two agents with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) "fired their service issued weapons in response to an individual on foot, rapidly approaching the CBP officers, wielding in his hand what appeared to be a black handgun," said an email statement late Sunday by Ken Hammond Sr., a chief officer in CBP public affairs in Washington D.C.

"One officer fired three rounds, the other fired one round," according to Hammond's statement. "One round hit the subject in the arm. Investigators determined that the individual was holding a replica of a handgun."

The incident on the Ambassador Bridge, which links Detroit to Windsor, Ontario, began about 3 a.m. Sunday As the man approached the inspection booth on the Detroit side, he stopped and got out of his car, then walked in the inspection lanes while waving what authorities first said appeared to be a handgun.

The man did not drop it, even as border patrol officers ordered him to do so, according to an earlier press release from CBP, and then pointed the apparent weapon at them. That's when border patrol agents fired at the man, "who fell to the ground."

The man was taken to a hospital and was released into custody after treatment for his injuries, U.S. authorities said. The individual was a Canadian citizen, the statement said.

Hammond said in his statement that the incident was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security's Inspector General, border patrol's internal affairs office, and the Detroit Police. Investigators reviewed video of the shooting and interviewed five witnesses, Hammond said.

Shortly before the Ambassador Bridge shooting, Windsor police reported encountering the same man exiting a black Ford Explorer with what was believed to be a firearm in his hand, at a McDonald's, the Windsor Star reported. When Windsor police officers shouted for him to drop it, the man reportedly told them "Why haven't you shot me yet?" according to the Windsor Star, before he drove away from the scene.

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