A 13-year-old boy, who was allegedly brandishing a pellet gun, was fatally shot by police following a foot chase in Utica, authorities said Saturday.
The shooting unfolded Friday night around 10:18 p.m., after officers with the Utica Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit approached a pair of juveniles walking along Shaw Street.
After they were stopped, the 13-year-old fled — prompting officers to give chase — and then displayed “what appeared to be a handgun,” according to a press release from police.
After a struggle on the ground, a police officer “ultimately discharged his firearm once, striking the male,” Police Chief Mark Williams told reporters at a news conference on Saturday.
Officers later recovered “a replica GLOCK 17 Gen 5 handgun with a detachable magazine” from the scene. Williams said the weapon appeared to be a pellet gun.
The boy, whom authorities identified only as Asian, was rushed to Wynn Hospital, where he died from his wounds.
“Our thoughts are with the family of the deceased juvenile, as well as our officers involved in this incident,” the Utica Police Department said in a statement.
Williams did not reveal the identities of the officers, who were placed on paid administrative leave in wake of the deadly gunfire.
He also declined to provide the reason the juveniles were stopped, but said police would be releasing more information in the coming days, including the bodycam footage from the incident.
Bystander video making the rounds on social media shows a trio of cops chasing after the boy in a residential neighborhood. After they finally catch up and take him to the ground, one officer can be seen punching the boy before the gunfire.
Neighbors can also be heard crying out from behind their cameras, proclaiming their shock over the deadly shooting.
Police said they are aware of the video, “which does not portray the incident in its entirety” and “ask that the public obtains all of the information that will be made available when reviewing this tragic incident.”
Both the New York Attorney General’s Office and the Utica Police Department are conducting separate investigation into the shooting.
With News Wire Services