FACT CHECK

Man shot by police near RNC armed with knives, not gun | Fact check

Portrait of Hannah Hudnall Hannah Hudnall
USA TODAY

The claim: Police shot potential shooter near RNC

A July 16 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) claims police shot a gunman outside the Republican National Convention.

"BREAKING NEWS: Police just shot a potential shooter near the the (sic) RNC," reads text within the post, which was originally shared on X, formerly Twitter. "They’re trying to kill Trump, again."

The post garnered more than 1,000 likes in a day. Similar versions of the claim were shared on Instagram, Threads, and Facebook.

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Our rating: False

The post conflates two separate incidents involving armed men near the convention. Police arrested a man with a gun on July 15 and fatally shot a man armed with knives the next day. No potential shooter was shot.

No potential shooter shot near RNC

The assassination attempt at former President Donald Trump's July 13 rally raised concerns about security at the Republican National Convention that started two days later in Milwaukee. Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee released a statement the day of the rally that the convention would proceed but didn't provide details about any security changes.

Police arrested a 21-year-old man blocks from the convention center on July 15, the first day of the event, on suspicion of carrying a concealed weapon. The man was wearing a ski mask and carrying a "large tactical backpack," according to Milwaukee police. He was found by U.S. Capitol Police to have a gun in his bag despite not having a concealed carry permit.

Officials said he was carrying an AK-47 pistol, fully-loaded magazine and a "Scream" movie mask, Milwaukee station WDJT reported.

But the man was not shot by the police.

The next day, five police officers shot and killed a man armed with knives about a mile outside the RNC's security perimeter.

Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said 13 police officers from Columbus, Ohio, were in the area for a briefing when they witnessed a nearby fight between two individuals, one of whom had a knife in each hand.

Police ordered the man, Samuel Sharpe Jr., to drop the knives, but he refused and instead charged at the other person. Police opened fire, Norman said.

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Body cam footage released by Columbus police shows Sharpe charging at the other person with knives in his hands as police shout, "Drop the knife." Two knives were recovered at the scene, according to Norman.

USA TODAY reached out to the X user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response. The Instagram user couldn't be contacted.

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