*The family of a 20-year-old California rapper who was fatally shot by police in a Taco Bell drive-thru said an officer’s bodycam footage shows the victim was not awake when the trigger happy cops opened fire.
Matter fact, Willie McCoy appeared to be scratching himself, not grabbing for a weapon, as law officials alleged.
“What we saw was a sleeping man,” David Harrison, a cousin of McCoy said. “He reaches with his right arm to his left shoulder, scratching. He wasn’t awake. There wasn’t enough time for him to wake up.”
As we previously reported, police in the Bay Area city of Vallejo said the incident went down when employees at the Taco Bell called 911 about a driver slumped over in a car at the drive-thru. When two patrol officers arrived on the scene, they claim they noticed a handgun in McCoy’s lap and called for backup.
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The family of a California rapper who was fatally shot by police said an officer’s bodycam footage suggests he was not awake when they opened fire, and that he appeared to be scratching himself, not grabbing for a weapon. https://t.co/RrnoZfNgaq
— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 15, 2019
Once backup arrived, six officers reportedly wasted little time in firing “multiple rounds” at McCoy, in the span of four seconds. It’s unclear how many bullets struck him, but his family said at least 20 may have hit his car, according to msn.com.
“It seems like an execution,” Harrison said. “It looks like my baby cousin was executed by a firing squad.”
In the video, he said officers told McCoy to show them his hands and then quickly shot him, adding that the officers never identify themselves as police.
“It was like almost instantaneous,” Harrison added. “I can’t tell you how many seconds, but if I was to estimate, from what I’ve seen, maybe from a couple of seconds.”
The family’s description of events after viewing the bodycam footage differs from the police’s official statement.
Police said as McCoy “quickly moved his hands downward” toward his gun, so six officers “fearing for their safety” shot him in four seconds. There is no mention whether the victim fired his weapon, and none of the officers were injured.
Attorneys for his family said he was hit about in the face, throat and upper body.
All six of the officers remain on duty.
Harrison said he also heard on the footage one officer say to another of McCoy that “if he moves,” then gestured that he knows “what to do.
“They have said he reached for a gun,” Harrison added. “We never saw that.”
Police have not released the bodycam footage publicly, citing the ongoing investigation.
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