Facebook video appears to show fatal police shooting of black man

© Lavish Reynolds/Facebook

Footage appears to show what happened after a police officer shot Philando Castile “four or five times.”

A VIDEO depicting an apparent police shooting of a man sat in his car with his wife and child posted on Facebook Live on Wednesday, July 6, has sparked widespread indignation.

Local reports confirmed that Philando Castile, 32, died from his injuries after being shot by a police officer in St Paul, Minnesota.

Family members said that Castile had told the officer that he was in possession of a licensed firearm, and was reaching for his wallet when the cop opened fire.

The shocking incident follows the death of black man Alton Sterling on Tuesday, who was gunned down by police in Louisiana as he sold mix tape CDs outside a shop, with hundreds of angered citizens protesting on both nights since.

In Minnesota, Castile’s girlfriend, Lavish Reynolds, live-streamed the aftermath of his shooting, which showed him covered in blood as the officer brandished his weapon.

The car in which the pair were travelling had a broken rear light, leading to it being stopped by a police patrol, and in the video Ms Reynolds is heard to say: “You shot four bullets into him, sir. He was just getting his licence and registration, sir.”

At one point, the cop says: “I told him not to reach for it. I told him to get his hand out.”

Police say they have opened investigations into both incidents, as national protests by African-Americans over the deaths begin to intensify, while Reynolds was apparently in police custody on Thursday morning.

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