Upstate New York teen shot dead by police after allegedly brandishing pellet gun

An upstate New York town is outraged after a 13-year-old boy was shot and killed during a scuffle with police after he allegedly brandished a pellet gun, police said.

Nyah Mway was fatally shot by a Utica police officer around 10:20 p.m. Friday night after police stopped him and another juvenile as they were walking down the street, police said.

A video circulating on social media shows three police officers chasing the boy down a dark street and another tackling him to the ground. The other two cops join the fray as bystanders shout at the officers.

A woman is heard shouting, “Attention, attention, yo, attention. You're on camera.”

Suddenly, a gunshot rang out.

“Oh my God! Yo! He just shot him!” one shocked witness exclaimed.

Community members expressed anger and demanded justice at Saturday's emotional news conference, with people sometimes shouting over local officials.

The press conference was initially intended for members of the media only, but when officials saw the large crowd that had gathered outside City Hall – including 50 members of Mway's family – they decided to let the public attend, according to Syracuse.com

One person was seen holding a sign that read, “Our parents didn't flee war to have their children shot by police,” Syracuse.com reported.

Mway's heartbroken mother was present and broke down and screamed as the officials' remarks were translated into her native Burmese, the outlet said.

“There's a lot of emotion in this room,” Utica Police Chief Mark Williams said at one point.

“But you ask us to be transparent, and when you yell at us, it makes it very difficult.”

Mway, who is Asian, displayed what appeared to be a handgun as he fled police, Williams said Saturday.

Officers tackled the teen to the ground and fired a shot “during a struggle on the ground,” the chief said.

The boy was shot in the chest and died of his injuries at Wynn Hospital in Utica, police said.

A replica Glock air pistol with a detachable magazine was recovered, police said.

Utica Mayor Michael Galime said that while the police stop was common, “it turned tragic in a matter of moments.”

“I cannot express, in words, that this point cannot change what has changed forever since last night,” Galime said.

“Our condolences to the families, the community and the entire city of Utica and the surrounding area for what is happening during this event.”

After the press conference, Galime approached the boy's mother and explained that the body camera footage would be released.

As they spoke, a man yelled in the background that the officers should be charged with first-degree murder, according to Syracuse.com.

Another person in the crowd shouted that community members had fled “persecution from the Burmese army.”

Utica has a large Burmese population, according to the media outlet.

The attorney general's office will open an investigation into the shooting, the mayor said.

The case will also be the subject of an internal investigation by the Utica Police Department.

“This is a tragic and traumatic incident for everyone involved,” Chief Williams said.

The three police officers involved have been placed on paid leave.

Their names will be revealed “in a short period of time,” he said.

Police confirmed they were aware of the online video of the shooting, but said in a statement that it “does not describe the incident in its entirety.”