Teen killed by New York police buried

UTICA, N.Y. (AP) — A 13-year-old boy shot and killed by police in upstate New York after pointing what turned out to be an air pistol at officers was laid to rest Saturday.

Hundreds of people turned out for Nyah Mway’s funeral in Utica, with mourners filling the funeral home and spilling out onto the sidewalk to pay their respects, the Rome Daily Sentinel reported.

Videos shared on social media show that a solemn ceremony then took place at a local cemetery.

Members of the town’s Karen ethnic minority community, many wearing traditional dress, laid flowers and wreaths while several Buddhist monks led the gathering in prayer as Mway’s white coffin was lowered into the ground.

Mourners also announced at the end of the ceremony that they planned to hold a peaceful march through the city next Saturday to demand justice for the teenager.

Mway, whose last name is Nyah, was killed June 28 after Utica police said he ran from officers after being stopped on the street.

Body camera footage released by police shows officers yelling “Fire!” before one of them tackles Mway to the ground and punches him. Another officer opens fire as the two struggle on the ground.

The teenager was shot in the chest and died at the hospital. Police said they recovered a pellet gun resembling a Glock 17 at the scene of the shooting.

Mway was a Myanmar-born refugee and member of the Karen ethnic minority who had just completed high school.

His relatives and other members of the local Karen community have called for police to be held accountable, as the boy was already restrained and on the ground when he was shot.

The state attorney general’s office is investigating and the officers involved have been placed on leave, as per protocol.