13-year-old boy shot dead by police in New York

A 13-year-old boy was shot and killed by police in Utica, New York, earlier this week.

According to a Utica Police Department press release, Officer Patrick Husnay shot Nyah Mway on Friday, June 28, after the juvenile allegedly pulled out what appeared to be a handgun during a strip search.

At around 10 p.m. local time, Husney and two other Utica police officers, Bryce Patterson and Andrew Citriniti, were patrolling a neighborhood that had recently seen “at least two” robberies.

Based on the characteristics of the suspects in a June 27 robbery, officers approached Mway and another unidentified juvenile, also 13, who were “in close proximity to the previous robbery at approximately the same time of day,” the news release said.

The officers tried to stop the two teenagers. But while they were searching Mway, the teenager fled and, according to initial information from the police, pulled out “something that looked like a gun.”

According to police, Mway pulled the object, which was later identified as a “replica of a GLOCK air pistol,” in front of his body and pointed it “directly” at the officers.

Officer Husnay then fired his service weapon at Mway, striking him, police said. The teen was taken to a local hospital where he died from the gunshot wound.

Utica police released photos of the air rifle and bodycam footage of the incident.

In a statement, the department said: “Our thoughts are with the officers involved and the family of the deceased youth.”

According to police, two investigations are currently underway into the fatal shooting: that of the New York State Attorney General and the Utica Police Department’s internal professional standards investigation.

Authorities said the three officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave, ABC News reported.

“As with any investigation into an officer-involved shooting, it is the responsibility of the New York State Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigations to determine whether the shooting violated state law,” the press release said. “However, we felt it prudent to ensure that all evidence currently available to us is made publicly available – consistent with our commitment to transparency.”

“It is our sincere wish that at the end of these investigations there will be an impartial, fair and thorough investigation that will provide answers to all outstanding questions,” the press release continues.

According to ABC News, a vigil for Mway was held in Utica on Saturday, June 29, about 24 hours after the shooting. Hundreds of people attended and several people spoke, including members of the victim’s family.

Mway’s sister, Thoung Oo, had set up a GoFundMe page to “raise money for his funeral, legal fees for his justice, and family expenses, including counseling.” Oo said her brother was “coming home from a barbecue for his eighth-grade graduation” at the time of the shooting.

“He’s never been in trouble with the police, he’s been a good kid,” Oo wrote. “The UPD video camera, the witness statements and the stories they told my family don’t add up, especially when they told my parents (who don’t speak any English) that there was a shooting. We need answers.”

Oo also said that Mway “just graduated from 8th grade two days ago and was looking forward to going to high school in the fall,” adding, “Because of this tragedy, I will never see him grow up.”

She further explained that her family – Mway’s mother, father and three siblings – moved to the United States from Myanmar when Mway was a young child. “Our family moved to America from Myanmar nine years ago as refugees seeking a better life, safe from police killings and ethnic cleansing,” she wrote.

“My brother was an outgoing boy who loved to ride his bike outside and play with his friends and family,” she continued, adding, “Our parents and grandparents did not flee the war and the corrupt military to be persecuted by the American police.”