A Bronx dad was shot dead when he turned to face the plainclothes cop who had just ordered him to drop a baseball bat, said two tenants who witnessed the shooting in their Kingsbridge building.
Cousins Wanda Palmero, 21, and Juan Rodriguez, 16, said Alex Figueroa had his back to the cops who answered a 911 call about a man with a gun on the fourth floor of the building.
They said Figueroa, 40, was shot after he had lowered the bat and taken a step or two back.
“He turned around, and they shot him.” Palmero said. “Alex . . . turned around when police yelled, ‘Put down your weapons!’ ” Rodriguez said. “He moved back, and he was shot.”
A police source said four of 15 witnesses interviewed said Figueroa had the bat chest high.
Officer Michael Falcione, 30, is on desk duty pending investigation.