Officers were responding to a vandalism incident in the 13800 block of Victory Boulevard near Matilija Avenue when they found a man with knives in both hands slashing car tires around 5:20 p.m., according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Authorities described the knives as having blood on them, but could not say where it came from or if the man had assaulted someone before they arrived. The man was not wearing a Halloween costume and the knives were real, they added.
Police say the suspect refused orders to drop the knives and advanced toward officers. When a less-lethal weapon did not stop him, that's when officers shot him.
The suspect, only described as a man in his 40s, was pronounced dead at the scene. No officers were injured.
The weapons were recovered at the scene.