stltoday | Among the claims that ignited the fury over the fatal shooting of
Michael Brown were that Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson chased the
unarmed teen on foot, shot at him as he ran away, then fired a barrage
of fatal shots after Brown had turned around with his hands up.
Almost
all of the witnesses who shared these accounts with media either knew
Brown; lived at or near the Canfield Green apartments, where the
shooting occurred; or were visiting friends or relatives there.
But
there were two outsiders who happened to be working outside at the
apartment complex on Aug. 9 — two men from a company in Jefferson County
— who heard a single gunshot, looked up from their work and witnessed
the shooting.
Both have given their statements to the St. Louis
County police and the FBI. One of the men agreed to share his account
with a Post-Dispatch reporter on the condition that his name and
employer not be used.
The worker, who has not previously spoken
with reporters, said he did not see what happened at the officer’s car —
where Wilson and Brown engaged in an initial struggle and a shot was
fired from Wilson’s gun.
His account largely matches those who
reported that Wilson chased Brown on foot away from the car after the
initial gunshot and fired at least one more shot in the direction of
Brown as he was fleeing; that Brown stopped, turned around and put his
hands up; and that the officer killed Brown in a barrage of gunfire.
