Paparazzo killed by oncoming traffic while following Justin Bieber

A photographer was struck by oncoming traffic as he walked across a Los Angeles freeway to get back to his car after taking photos of Justin Bieber.

The photographer thought he took shots of Bieber sitting in his parked white Ferrari but the 18-year-old pop star was not in the car at the time of the incident. Bieber was pulled over by California Highway Patrol officers at an off-ramp of Interstate 405.

According to Los Angeles Police spokesman James Stoughton, the photographer spotted Bieber’s Ferrari, parked his car across the street, crossed to get closer to Bieber’s car and took photos of its occupants. Officers told the man twice to return to his car, KTLA reported. As he finally crossed back across the street to leave, the paparazzo was struck by a vehicle. Authorities have not released the man’s name.

“While I was not present nor directly involved with this tragic accident, my thoughts and prayers are with the family of the victim. Hopefully this tragedy will finally inspire meaningful legislation and whatever other necessary steps to protect the lives and safety of celebrities, police officers, innocent public bystanders, and the photographers themselves,” Bieber said in a statement.

Bieber is a favorite target of the paparazzi, with the most recent incident being reported on our website in November 2012.