Police Unsure if Shot that Killed Affton Man Was Fired by Police or Suicide

A man was killed by a gunshot wound in Affton at about 7:40 p.m. Friday in the 9800 block of Arv-Ellen after police responded to a disturbance at his home. St. Louis County Police said it’s unclear whether the man killed himself or if a police officer shot him.

Police said officers responded to a 911 call reporting that Shawn Spiros, 36, was acting extremely agitated, drunk and crazy. Spiros reportedly was waiving a gun in the air and yelling for people to call the police.

When officers arrived, he was sitting on his front porch.

Officers tried talking to him in an effort to secure his safety, and those living around him. At one point the communication ceased, and the man pulled out a firearm from his waistband, raised it toward officers and then to his own head.

In that second, two shots were fired in succession, one by the male and the other by a single officer. Police said it is currently unclear whether the man was kllled by a self-inflicted gunshot wound or from the shot fired by police.

The St. Louis County Medical Examiner's Office will release a report at a later date determining the cause of death.