Johan Quintero

Police identified the dead man as Johan Quintero, 22, of Greenville, South Carolina. St. Charles County police Chief Kurt Frisz said Quintero was a backseat passenger in a 2021 Ford Expedition SUV that was speeding east on Interstate 70. The vehicle had Florida plates. The officer smelled a strong odor of marijuana in the car when he approached, according to Frisz and court documents. A second officer arrived and began talking with the driver, who was cooperative and put in handcuffs. A woman sat in the front seat. The officer who made the traffic stop walked to the passenger side and confronted Quintero. The officer told Quintero to get out of the vehicle, and he complied, police said. As the officer was patting him down to search for weapons, Quintero reached for his waistband, and the officer saw a gun, police said. They struggled over the weapon, the officer couldn’t take it away so he moved back and shot Quintero, the chief said. According to the radio call, the dispatcher asked the officer if he and his partner were OK. “Yeah we’re good. He tried to pull a handgun,” he responded. Neither officer at the traffic stop was hurt. Police recovered two Glock pistols, one that Quintero carried and one that was tossed from the car onto the gas station lot, Frisz said.