Angry protests have formed in St. Louis late Wednesday night after a fatal police-involved shooting occurred.
Details are scant at the moment, but here’s what we know so far based on early reports from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: An off-duty member of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police shot and killed 18-year-old Vonderrick Myers, Jr., after an encounter of unclear nature.
Police claim the victim was armed and had fired at the officer; witnesses and family members dispute that account.
More from the Post-Dispatch:
Police said the uniformed officer involved was working a secondary job for a private security company when he encountered four pedestrians in the 4100 block of Shaw Boulevard and stopped to talk with them at about 7:30 p.m.
The four fled and the officer chased one, Assistant Chief Alfred Adkins said.
The man the officer was chasing jumped from some bushes and struggled with the officer, Adkins said. The man then pulled a gun and fired at the officer, Adkins said. The officer returned fire and fatally shot the man.
The officer was not injured and a gun was recovered from the scene, police said.
“He was unarmed,” the victim’s cousin told the newspaper. “He had a sandwich in his hand, and they thought it was a gun. It’s like Michael Brown all over again.”
Soon after the shooting, a crowd began to form on the block, pushing officers out of the area, chanting phrases last heard during the Ferguson, Mo., protests over an officer’s killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown: “Whose streets? Our streets” along with “Hands up! Don’t shoot!”
This is a developing story. Check back later for more details.
Source:
staff