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Black Man Shot And Killed In St. Louis Mall After Allegedly Raising His Gun Towards Officers

Over the weekend, a Black man in St. Louis was gunned down by police after allegedly pointing his gun at the officers after a foot chase through a local mall. 

Three officers — two from Richmond Heights and one from Overland, Missouri who was working security at the Galleria Mall — claimed Terry Tillman raised a gun in the direction of one of the cops. One Richmond Heights officer fired seven shots, hitting Tillman 3 to 5 times in his front torso, according to the officer’s account.

A cop saw the 23-year-old inside the Galleria carrying a handgun. The mall prohibits weapons despite concealed carry being legal in Missouri. 

St. Louis County police say the officer told Tillman about the policy before he fled outside. The officer chased him to an adjacent parking garage, where he was shot.  Life-saving treatment was administered but Tillman was pronounced dead on the scene.

The officer, a 23-year veteran, told cops Tillman had his firearm raised at the time, although police confirmed Tillman did not discharge his weapon. 

Police said a gun was recovered, but few other details have been released.

“Death investigations are always complicated, whether there was an officer-involved or not,” said St. Louis County Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Benjamin Granda. “There are no incidents that come under greater scrutiny than a police officer-involved shooting.”

KSDK reports authorities are reviewing over 150 hours of surveillance video from the Galleria property and nearby businesses. He also said the department is looking for more witnesses.

Rachel Jones, Tillman’s sister, told KMOV her brother was at the Galleria shopping with his pregnant girlfriend and doesn’t understand what led to his fatal shooting. 

"Words can't explain that's my only brother, he had a baby [coming,]" Jones said.

Jones and other family and friends held a vigil for Tillman on Sunday afternoon.

On Monday, about 30 people protested the incident at the Galleria. Two protesters were arrested for blocking a street.

Richmond Heights is 12 miles south from Ferguson, where unarmed Black teenager Michael Brown was gunned down by white officer Darren Wilson on August 9, 2014. 

Wilson, who resigned from the force that November, was never prosecuted.

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