Police: Armed man shot and killed in Berkeley, Mo.

[Luke Skywalker]

{vb:raw ozzmodz_postquote}:

A man in Berkeley, Missouri is dead after a confrontation with police late Tuesday night. Police say the man was armed and pulled his gun on an officer, who then fired several shots.



Police stand guard Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014, following a shooting at a gas station in Berkeley, Mo.(Photo: David Carson, AP)


An armed man was shot and killed by police in Berkeley, Mo. on Tuesday night, police said. The shot man was black, according to media reports.
The shooting happened a few miles from Ferguson, where a white police officer fatally shot Michael Brown in August, sparking months of civil unrest.
St. Louis County police spokesman Sgt. Brian Schellman said a police officer saw two males at the side of a gas station while conducting a routine business check at about 11:15 p.m. He approached them and one of the men pulled a handgun and pointed it at the officer, Schellman said in a statement.
"Fearing for his life, the Berkeley Officer fired several shots, striking the subject, fatally wounding him. The second subject fled the scene," Schellman said.
A crowd of about 100 people gathered in Berkeley early Wednesday. Toni Martin, a woman at the scene, claimed the deceased is her son Antonio Martin, age 18, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The hashtag #AntonioMartin was trending on social media.
Toni Martin said her son did not have a gun and had only just left their home to go see his girlfriend, KSDK reported.
Police say they cannot confirm the deceased's identity at this time.
Crowds began assembling at the Mobil gas station shortly after the shooting. KSDK reporter John Henry said the crowds were relatively calm until sometime after 2 a.m., when some individuals began throwing rocks and bricks in the direction of police. A smoke device was also hurled toward police.
The Berkeley Police Department asked that the St. Louis County Police Department handle the investigation, which is ongoing, the police statement said. Authorities will hold a 7 a.m. news conference to discuss the incident.
Detectives said they recovered the deceased's handgun at the scene.
Berkeley is a neighboring city to Ferguson, Mo., where Michael Brown, 18, was shot and killed by a police officer in August.
Protests were renewed last month when a grand jury declined to indict Darren Wilson, a white police officer, in the shooting of unarmed Brown, who was black.
Contributing: Associated Press




Powered By WizardRSS.com | Full Text RSS Feed