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Police shoot teenager with replica gun in New York

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A police officer in upstate New York shot and killed a 13-year-old boy who was knocked to the ground as he ran from police with a replica handgun, authorities said Saturday. The shooting occurred around 10:15 p.m. Friday after officers stopped two teens for an unspecified “police investigation,” Utica Police Chief Mark Williams said. One of them, identified by police as Nyah Mway, allegedly ran from officers and “displayed” a handgun that was later determined to be a replica Glock 17 Gen 5 with a detachable magazine. “During a ground struggle” with the teen, one of the officers fired a single shot that struck the boy in the chest, Williams said. The teen was given “immediate” first aid by officers and taken to Wynn Hospital, where he died, the police chief said. The replica gun carried by the teenager “is a realistic looking firearm in every way, with GLOCK markings, signatures, detachable magazine and serial numbers,” Lt. Michael Curley, a police spokesman, said by email. “Ultimately, however, it only fires pellets or BBs.” A bystander video posted on Facebook shows one of the officers chasing Nyah Mway and throwing him to the ground. It also shows the officer punching the teenager as two more officers arrive. As the teen lies on the ground, a gunshot rings out and the officers quickly get up. Williams cautioned that the bystander’s video does not fully capture the event. The officers involved in the shooting, whose names were not immediately released, have been placed on leave with pay. The shooting has rocked Utica, a city about 250 miles (400 kilometers) northwest of Manhattan that is home to more than 4,200 people from Myanmar, according to The Center, a nonprofit that helps resettle the refugees. Nyah Mway, who local media reports said was an eighth-grader at Donovan Middle School, was identified as a refugee born in Myanmar and a member of the Karen ethnic minority. The Karen are an ethnic minority group that is among groups at war with military rulers of the Southeast Asian country formerly known as Burma. The army overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests demanding a return to democratic rule. During a tense news conference on Saturday, Williams would not say what prompted police to stop the two youths or what the investigation was about. The news conference ended early as Williams, the city’s mayor and an interpreter struggled to speak amid repeated outbursts of anger from the audience. Community members, including the youth’s family, were in attendance. Williams promised to release unedited video from officers’ body-worn cameras but had not done so by Saturday evening. The police department is conducting its own internal investigation to determine whether officers followed policies and training. The state’s attorney general, who did not respond to a request for comment Saturday, will open his own investigation to determine whether the shooting was justified. “I want to express my deepest condolences to the family of the deceased during this difficult time,” Williams said. “This is a tragic and traumatic incident for everyone involved.”

NEW YORK –

A police officer in upstate New York shot and killed a 13-year-old boy who was knocked to the ground while running from police carrying a replica gun, authorities said Saturday.

The shooting occurred around 10:15 p.m. Friday after officers stopped two juveniles for an unspecified “police investigation,” Utica Police Chief Mark Williams said.

One of them, identified by police as Nyah Mway, allegedly ran from officers and “displayed” a pistol, later found to be a replica Glock 17 Gen 5 with a detachable magazine. “During a ground struggle” with the teenager, one of the officers fired a single shot that struck the boy in the chest, Williams said.

Officers provided “immediate” first aid to the teenager and he was taken to Wynn Hospital, where he died, the police chief said.

The replica gun carried by the teenager “looks realistic in every way, with GLOCK markings, signatures, detachable magazine and serial numbers,” police spokesman Lt. Michael Curley said by email. “Ultimately, however, it only fires pellets or BBs.”

A video posted on Facebook by a passerby shows one of the police officers chasing Nyah Mway and throwing him to the ground. It also shows the officer punching the teenager as two more police officers arrive. As the teenager lies on the ground, a gunshot rings out and the police officers quickly get up.

Williams pointed out that the passerby’s video does not capture the entire event.

The officers involved in the shooting, whose names were not immediately released, were placed on leave with their pay intact.

The shooting has rocked Utica, a city about 250 miles northwest of Manhattan that is home to more than 4,200 people from Myanmar, according to the Center, a nonprofit organization that helps resettle refugees.

Nyah Mway, who was in Grade 8 at Donovan Middle School according to local media reports, was identified as a Myanmar-born refugee and a member of the Karen ethnic minority.

Karen are an ethnic minority who are among the groups at war with the military rulers of the Southeast Asian country formerly known as Burma. The army overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests demanding a return to democratic rule.

During a tense news conference Saturday, Williams would not say what prompted police to stop the two teens or what the investigation was about. The news conference ended early as Williams, the city’s mayor and an interpreter struggled to speak amid repeated outbursts of anger from the audience. Community members, including the teen’s family, were in attendance.

Williams promised to release unedited videos from the officers’ body-worn cameras, but had not done so as of Saturday evening.

The police department is currently conducting its own internal investigation to determine whether officers followed policies and training. The state’s attorney general, who did not respond to a request for comment Saturday, will open his own investigation to determine whether the shooting was justified.

“I would like to express my deepest condolences to the family of the deceased during this difficult time,” Williams said. “This is a tragic and traumatic incident for everyone involved.”

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