Police shot and killed a man in south Los Angeles after chasing a car on Saturday, sparking a protest after the witnesses said that the 18 years old was shot in the back five times while running away with his hands up.

Sgt. Barry Montgomery said that the chase began when officers tried to pull over a car with paper plates, suspecting that the vehicle might have been stolen, and the driver refused to stop.

He said that the passenger got out of the car within the pursuit and ran into the back of a house, where he had been shot. The driver fled the scene and remained on the loose.

Early on Sunday morning, the Los Angeles Police Department mentioned in a statement that they found a handgun at the scene of the shooting. The department did not provide any other information about the gun.

The shooting drew several dozen people to the scene. Some people waved signs that read “Black Lives Matter,” and others shouted at officers standing behind yellow police tape and wearing riot helmets.

Area resident Monique Morgan told CBS Los Angeles that she believed the victim to be her son, 18 years old Carnell Snell Jr.       

Morgan pleaded to police when arriving on the scene, “Please let me see my baby. If that’s my baby, please let me see him,” .

Witnesses told CBS Los Angeles that the deceased man, thought to be Snell had been running with his hands up, and said that he had been telling officers that he was unarmed, while police shot him about five times.

Relatives of the dead man told the Times Snell had been killed on the same street where he lived.

Police have not declared how many times Snell was shot or if he was shot in the back.

Trenell Snell, 17 years old, said that she was outside with friends when she saw her older brother running from police. She said that she had started running too, and that she hit the ground when she heard gunfire.

By Prakriti Neogi