US Police officers shot and killed a homeless man in downtown Los Angeles in a dramatic confrontation caught on video, media report said.
Five officers grappled on a pavement with a man known as Africa before shooting him five times in front of horrified onlookers, The Guardian reported.
The victim, whose full name has not been made public, was pronounced dead shortly after the encounter, which unfolded just before midday in skid row, a neighborhood of homeless people and shelters close to the financial district.
People at the scene and on social media expressed shock that a scuffle on a busy street in broad daylight ended with lethal force, putting police violence under renewed scrutiny in the wake of protests over fatal encounters in Ferguson, New York and other cities.
People took to Twitter to link the cases. “Here we go. Again,” said @sanacardi. “When will this end??” said @CaileyCron.
Some called for a demonstration on Sunday night at Pershing Square, several blocks from the killing.
The video, which was posted on Facebook, showed officers grappling with a man beside what appeared to be an improvised tent and other homeless possessions. He resisted with flailing limbs.
A woman passing by scooped up a nightstick dropped by an officer. Two officers handcuffed her while their colleagues continued wrestling with the man.
Onlookers gasped and remonstrated. “They just killed that man. They just shot that motherfuckin’ man like that,” said one.
