Honolulu Police Department spokeswoman Michelle Yu today confirmed police have sent what was initially believed to be a replica pellet air gun to its lab to determine if it is a firearm. Oliver Shawn Tela, 27, of Nanakuli was shot in the shoulder after he allegedly drew the pistol during a confrontation with a police officer in Kaimuki.

Investigators said the shooting started after police responded to a minor collision involving two vehicles at the intersection of 6th and Harding avenues at about 11 a.m. Tela was one of the motorists.

Police said Tela appeared agitated and was pacing near his car. He told police his driver’s license had been suspended. An officer was doing a routine criminal background check before writing a citation when he was advised that Tela had a outstanding $10,000 parole revocation warrant stemming from a second-degree robbery conviction.

According to investigators, Tela became more agitated and allegedly remarked to two officers that he was not going back to prison. One of the two officers pepper sprayed Tella when he resisted arrest. The other officer, standing 10-15 feet away, fired three shots when Tela allegedly pulled out a pistol from his fanny pack.

One of the shots grazed Tella in the right shoulder. He fled on foot up Harding Avenue and into a driveway across the street from Saint Patrick School with the two officers in pursuit. Investigators are checking on whether Tela fired a shot at the two officers.

Police Chief Lee Donohue yesterday said a 27-year-old officer, who joined HPD 14 months ago, fired three shots at Tela and no other officers fired a shot. Sister Rose Miriam Schillinger, principal of Saint Patrick School, said she heard four shots before ordering a lockdown.

Police reportedly recovered some bullets on the ground.

Tela ran through backyards but was captured by police at 12:10 p.m. fronting 1042 9th Ave. He was taken to The Queen’s Medical Center, where he was treated and released. Police took him to the main police station cellblock, where he was booked at 2:05 p.m. for first-degree terroristic threatening and the parole revocation warrant.

If the pistol turns out to be a modified gun, Tella could be charged with attempted murder.

A replica gun displayed in public is also a serious offense.

In July, Mayor Jeremy Harris signed a new law that prohibits people from having unconcealed replica guns in public or having them out in the presence of a law enforcement officer.

The intent of the law is to protect officers and the public from situations that could result in serious injury.

Three previous cases involving replica guns have been reported. HPD spokeswoman Yu said that police recently arrested two young boys outside the Waipahu Public Library for a similar offense.

Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.