A man was critically wounded after being shot by police early Wednesday morning in St. Louis County, Mo., near the site where clashes between law enforcement and protesters have occurred over the last few days.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the shooting took place at an intersection where just an hour earlier protesters had faced off against police. It also took place less than a mile from a convenience store that was looted and burned on Sunday night, according to the newspaper.
Though, as the report noted, it was unclear whether the latest shooting was related to protests in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson over the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown by police.
Police responded to a call about reports of shots fired by four to five men armed with shotguns and wearing ski masks around 1 a.m., according to the Dispatch. Officer Brian Schellman, a police spokesman, told the newspaper that the officers saw “multiple subjects running” when they arrived. Schellman said that one of the men pointed a handgun at an officer who approached him and the officer then fired at him.
The man was taken to a local hospital. Police said they recovered the individual’s handgun at the scene.
This post has been updated.
