JAMESTOWN, N.D. – Jamestown Police identify Sergeant Cory Beckman as the officer who shot and killed 27-year-old Devin Fontenot after he was shooting a gun in the parking lot of Fred’s Den Bar December 3.
Beckman has been with the department for five years and is a James Valley Special Operations Team Member, a K-9 handler and department peer support team member. He is on paid administrative leave as the shooting is under investigation by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Officers responded in the early morning because of a man armed with a gun and a knife. A 911 caller said the man was involved in a fight, was removed from the bar and later shot at the building.
Authorities say when an officer found the Fontenot, he was still shooting a rifle in the parking lot. Beckman ordered him to put his gun down, but he refused. Beckman shot Fontenot, gave him first aid and he was taken to Jamestown Regional Medical Center where he died.
