The Ferguson Police Department will be the subject of an FBI investigation following the shooting death of unarmed teenager Mike Brown in Missouri on Saturday, NBC reported.
St. Louis Division Special Agent in Charge William Woods said he has confidence in the St. Louis County police department, but feels an investigation is needed. The NAACP and other community leaders have asked federal officials to get involved in what they referred to as a racially charged shooting.
U.S. Attorney Eric Holder said the Justice Department will also cooperate with the FBI investigation. He said aggressively monitoring these types of cases is critical for preserving trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve, according to Vanity Fair. The officer who killed Brown has been placed on administrative leave.
Dorian Johnson, a friend that was present when the officer shot Brown, said the officer pulled up next to him and Brown while they were walking and told them to "get the f**k on the sidewalk." The officer then allegedly flung open his patrol car door, which bounced off Brown and closed. He then grabbed Brown by the neck and shirt, trying to pull him the car.
"He's pulling away, that's when I heard, 'I'm going to shoot you,'" Johnson told MSNBC.
The officer then shot Brown, who started to bleed, and the two boys took off running. Brown was then shot in the back again before putting up his hands and saying, "I don't have a gun, stop shooting." Brown fell dead to the ground after several more shots went off.
Since the shooting, photos, tweets and eyewitness accounts paint a picture of a community that is angry with police use of force. Brown's body was left in the street for hours before being removed, adding to the community's grief. Hacker group Anonymous has also vowed action against the Ferguson Police Department.
