A white Columbus, Ohio, police officer responding to a robbery report fatally shot a 13-year-old black boy after he pulled out what appeared to be a weapon and was later determined to be a BB gun, police said on Thursday.
Tyree King, 13, was shot multiple times in an alley east of downtown when he pulled what appeared to be a handgun from his waistband during a confrontation with police on Wednesday, police said.
Police said that King was black and the officer was white at a mid-day news conference on Thursday. The officer was identified as Bryan Mason, a nine-year veteran of the force.
King's death comes nearly two years after the fatal shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was black, by a white Cleveland police officer who responded to reports of a suspect with a gun in a city park.
An investigation revealed that Rice, who died a day after the shooting, had been seen holding a replica gun that shoots plastic pellets.
In King's shooting, detectives retrieved the weapon from the scene of the shooting and later determined it was a BB gun, which shoots small round pellets, with an attached laser, police said.
The incident began just before 8 p.m. EDT when police responded to reports of an armed robbery. The robbery victim told officers that a group of males approached him and demanded money after threatening him with a gun, police said.
Officers located three males, including King, matching the description of the suspects a short time later, police said. While attempting to question the group, King and another male fled into an alley.
Police followed them and attempted to arrest them, police said. Mason shot King, police said, after he pulled what appeared to be the handgun from his waistband.
King was transported to the Nationwide Children's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
The second male who ran into the alley was interviewed by police and released, police said.
"Additional suspects are being sought," said police. Columbus authorities were not immediately available for further comment.
The hashtag #TyreeKing was among the most used on Twitter in the United States on Thursday morning, as social media users expressed outrage over the shooting and drew comparisons between King and Tamir Rice.
“This is sad,” tweeted Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein. “We must stop demonizing black children.”
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