State Police are investigating the fatal shooting of an Amherst resident over the weekend. It happened as a State police SWAT team executed a search warrant at a residence on Newington Drive in the Town of Amherst Saturday night around 7:00. The warrant was part of an ongoing criminal investigation being conducted by Lynchburg Police. Police say the SWAT teams heard a gunshot and sent in a robot when they could not contact with the man inside. The robot found 35-year-old Joseph R. Lombard, with a firearm near his body. No state police officers fired their weapons.
Here is the entire news release from State Police:
The Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation’s Appomattox Field Office is investigating the fatal shooting of a Town of Amherst resident.
At approximately 7 p.m. Saturday (June 4, 2022), the Virginia State Police Tactical Team (aka a SWAT Team) was executing a search warrant at a residence on Newington Drive in the Town of Amherst. The warrant was issued in connection with an ongoing criminal investigation being conducted by the Lynchburg Police Department. As the Tactical Team attempted to make entry into the residence, a gunshot rang out from inside the house. The Tactical Team took cover and attempted to make contact with the male resident inside. When repeated verbal attempts failed to engage the resident, state police deployed a robot to enter the residence. The robot located a deceased male, Joseph R. Lombard, 35, inside the residence. A firearm was recovered near Lombard’s body.
No state police personnel discharged their weapons during the course of the incident.
Lombard’s remains were transported to the Office of the Medical Examiner for autopsy and examination.