Updated 07:44 AM EDT, Thu, Mar 28, 2024

Ferguson Riots Update: Police Identify Officer Responsible for Shooting, Now Say Michael Brown Was Suspect in Robbery

  • +
  • -
  • Sign up to receive the lastest news from LATINONE

Police in Ferguson, the suburban town that is the site of heated protests over an unarmed black teenager's shooting death by police, have identified the officer responsible for the shooting. The department also released documents that identify Michael Brown, the teen killed in the incident, as a suspect in a convenience store robbery.

In the documents, which were released Friday, police are alleging the teen was involved in a robbery in which he was suspected of stealing a $48.99 box of cigars at a convenience store, which took place about ten minutes before police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed Michael Brown.

According to the police reports, Brown and his friend, Dorian Johnson, were suspected of taking a box of cigars from a store in Ferguson that morning. Wilson, along with other officers, answered a 911 call in which a "strong-arm robbery" was reported at a nearby convenience store. No other details about the robbery were released, and Jackson did not answer questions.

According to police, the shot was fired after a struggle took place during Wilson's confronting of Brown. During the news conference, in which the disclosures were made, the police chief also stated that Wilson is a six-year veteran with no disciplinary action on his record.

The news conference comes on the heels of nearly a week's worth of protests in Ferguson, in which a number of citizens and journalists have been arrested. Photos of the protests have made waves across social media, with comparisons being made to the race riots of the '60s, as militarized police troops in full riot gear react to the scene.

Police also released images from the robbery, and discussed plans to release the entire video of the incident, which took place at a QuikTrip store in Ferguson.

"I am incensed," Laura Keys, 50, told The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "I can't believe this is the tactic they are using, bringing up a robbery to make the victim look like he was the person who created this whole mess."

Brown's friend, Dorian Jackson, recalls the incident differently, however. Jackson says he was walking down the street with Brown, when an officer ordered them out of the street. He then grabbed Brown's neck and tried to pull him into the car before firing his weapon.

He then says Brown started to run and the officer pursued him, firing multiple times.

© 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
  • Sign up to receive the lastest news from LATINONE
Close

Curiosidades

Real Time Analytics