Honolulu police recovered a .38-caliber handgun allegedly belonging to the 46-year-old man fatally shot by a deputy U.S. marshal during an arrest by the U.S. Marshals Felony Task Force.

Police said Bruce Zalonka, a probation violator, “brandished” a weapon, but the Marshals Service said he appeared to be reaching for something when he was shot.

U.S. Marshal Gervin Miyamoto said Wednesday the gun was “within arm’s reach” of Zalonka.

Police did not return calls to the Star-Advertiser.

The task force, acting on a tip, found Zalonka sitting in a van in the basement of a public parking garage in the Chinatown Gateway Plaza, an apartment complex.

Zalonka refused to get out of the van, so the task force team members entered the vehicle to arrest him, Miyamoto said. When he resisted arrest, they used a Taser to try to subdue him, but it failed to have an effect.

He appeared agitated, looked like he was reaching for a firearm, and that’s when he got shot, Miyamoto said, adding the garage was dark and it may have been difficult to see.

The Honolulu Medical Examiner’s Office identified Zalonka, but a cause and manner of death were not released Wednesday.

Police homicide detectives continued Wednesday to investigate the fatal shooting.

A source close to the investigation said the firearm was a .38-caliber handgun.

Zalonka had 15 convictions listed on the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center for one auto theft, four felony drug convictions and 10 petty misdemeanor and misdemeanor charges, ranging from petty theft to harassment.

He was also convicted of charges for weapons, unauthorized entry into a motor vehicle

He also had 60 arrests, Miyamoto said.

“The Honolulu Police Department has been a tremendous partner in our joint operations, and we thank them,” Miyamoto said.