What to know
- Body camera footage shows Baltimore police fatally shooting a former arabber after he fired at them during an attempted stop.
- An officer was shot and wounded in the foot in an exchange of gunfire after the suspect had allegedly brandished a gun and threatened people.
- The incident is under investigation.
By Dan Belson
Source Baltimore Sun
Baltimore Police released body camera footage Monday afternoon that shows officers exchanging gunfire with a man well-known as an arabber in West Baltimore, killing the 36-year-old and wounding an officer.
The graphic video of the June 17 shooting shows officers approaching Bilal Yusuf-Muhammad “B.J.” Abdullah Jr. and beginning to tackle him before the former arabber is seen reaching toward a firearm in his bag. A shot is heard before the officers retreat, draw their weapons and then exchange gunfire with Abdullah, who drops his weapon before picking it back up and raising it at the officers.
Overall, the three officers fired a total of 38 rounds toward Abdullah, who fired three shots, Deputy Police Commissioner Brian Nadeau said at a Monday news conference. Pending autopsy results will show how many of the bullets ultimately struck Abdullah, who died later that evening at the Maryland Shock Trauma Center.
One detective, Devin Yancy, was hit in the foot; he has since been released from Shock Trauma. Commissioner Richard Worley said that a pending ballistics analysis would determine where that bullet came from.
“It does appear that the round is coming from Mr. Abdullah,” said Nadeau, referring to a point in the video where an apparent ricochet is seen on the ground as Abdullah points his gun at Yancy.
Yancy and his two colleagues who fired at Abdullah are on routine administrative leave.
Worley said during Monday’s news conference that before police approached Abdullah, somebody had informed police that he had displayed a handgun and made “threatening statements.” Nadeau said there was video of Abdullah brandishing a firearm inside a store that could not be released.
He also noted that Abdullah was prohibited from carrying a firearm. Court records indicate that Abdullah was convicted of a felony drug offense in 2010, which would bar him from carrying a firearm.
Body camera footage usually is released within two weeks of a fatal police shooting, though Worley said that the video was shared earlier because of intense public attention. Residents decried how police addressed the situation, noting Abdullah’s mental health had recently declined, and local civil rights leaders said they were troubled by the shooting.
“I recognize that emotions are high,” Worley told reporters Monday at the department’s headquarters, calling Abdullah “a cherished member of the community” and saying that the arabber’s loss was “deeply felt.”
The shooting on Pennsylvania Avenue and Laurens Street, next to the Upton subway station and the Avenue Market, immediately prompted a heated confrontation between police, and a crowd that gathered at the scene. Worley said that the officers were impeded from rendering aid to Abdullah for three to four minutes.
Bystanders are seen in the video approaching officers as Abdullah bleeds out next to the escalators to the Upton subway station. Some get confrontational with authorities, and one officer appears to shove one person away.
The fatal police shooting in Upton also prompted a protest and emergency meeting of Baltimore’s Police Accountability Board on Friday. Abdullah was buried Saturday at King Memorial Park in Baltimore County.
Jamal Turner, chair of the city’s Police Accountability Board, said in a statement that the video depicts a “rapidly escalating and tragic encounter” that “raises difficult and emotional questions.”
“While it reflects the danger present in the moment, it also underscores the need to examine not only the incident but also the tactical responses and volume of force used,” he said, calling the number of shots fired by police “distressing.”
“We believe it warrants further review,” he said.
Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said at an unrelated news conference Monday afternoon that he fully understands “the pain and trauma that our residents and the community are feeling right now, and all of us… wish that this incident never happened.”
He said that he spoke with Yancy, the wounded detective, and that he’s grateful for the dedication of Baltimore Police, “who work to make Baltimore safer each and every day.” He said that he also spoke with Abdullah’s family, “who obviously are grieving the loss of their son.”
“We should not allow anybody to be reduced to the worst moments of their life or circumstances around their death,” Scott said. “But I’m going to be very clear, we cannot and will not allow individuals to carry and use illegal guns against police officers or anybody else in Baltimore without there being repercussions. We are committed to continue to break the cycle of violence in our city, and that means taking a comprehensive approach to public safety.”
Brooke Conrad contributed to this article.
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