GRANDVIEW, Mo. (AP) — A 17-year-old who was fatally shot by police in Missouri after confronting officers was holding a BB gun, authorities said.
Michael Mansur, a spokesman for the Jackson County prosecutors office, said that the teen had a Glock 19 BB pistol equipped with a slide that “reportedly looked like a firearm,” the Kansas City Star reported.
Lantz Stephenson Jr., of Grandview, was shot at a park in the Kansas City suburb of Grandview, and died later that day at a hospital, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said.
The highway patrol had said shortly after the shooting said investigators recovered a type of handgun from the scene. On Friday, patrol spokesman Sgt. Andy Bell, told the newspaper that “We stand by our original statement, the Patrol investigators recovered a type of handgun at the scene.”
Stephenson told dispatchers that he was armed with a gun and wanted to confront police officers, Bell said. The BB gun he carried uses air pressure to fire small metal balls.
Three officers responded to the call. The teen then “aggressively approached officers” with a gun, the highway patrol reported. Two of the officers fired shots at him.
The investigation is ongoing.
