Charley Saturmin Robinet: Homeless man shot dead by LAPD identified as French national with record for bank robbery

Mas shot and killed in Los Angeles on Sunday

Officers scuffle with two individuals just prior to the shooting (Anthony Blackburn, via Youtube/Facebook)

The homeless man shot dead by Los Angeles policemen on Sunday during a scuffle in which police say he grabbed at an officer's gun had previously served time in federal prison for armed bank robbery. He was also identified as a French national.

The Los Angeles Times named the man as Charley Saturmin Robinet, 39, a French national, who was accused of assaulting a bank employee during the 2000 holdup of a Wells Fargo Bank branch.

According to the newspaper, Robinet told investigators during initial questioning following his arrest that he robbed the bank to cover the cost of acting classes at the Beverly Hills Playhouse.

Authorities have yet to publicly identify the man who was fatally shot by three Los Angeles Police Department officers outside the Union Rescue Mission when they approached him in response to a reported skid-row robbery on Sunday.

But a law-enforcement source told Reuters on Tuesday that the Los Angeles Times had correctly identified the man, including the fact that he had been convicted of bank robbery. Federal prison and court records examined by Reuters show he was sentenced to 15 years in prison and was released from a federal facility in May.