N.J. man wielding fake gun shot dead by police

A man accused of domestic violence pointed what appeared to be a gun at police and was fatally shot by an officer, prosecutors said.

The weapon 43-year-old Richard Nordstrom had actually was an imitation, Ocean County Prosecutor Marlene Lynch Ford said Monday.

Manchester police went to Nordstrom's home around 2 p.m. Sunday after a relative called 911 and said Nordstrom had physically assaulted him. Family members told the officers that Nordstrom was in an unattached garage in the back of the property.

When the officers reached the garage, they saw Nordstrom holding a lighter and pouring gasoline on and around himself. They ordered him to drop the lighter, which he did. However, Ford said, Nordstrom then pointed the fake gun at an officer, who shot him several times. - AP