Anthony Alvarez Shot While Fleeing Chicago Police: Bodycam Video

CHICAGO — Police body camera footage released Wednesday shows 22-year-old Anthony Alvarez running from police when he was shot and killed by an officer during a foot pursuit last month.

Alvarez appears to have had his back to police at the time he was shot.

The video shows an officer shooting at Alvarez five times in the 5200 block of West Eddy Street in Portage Park, just a few blocks from where Alvarez lived. Police said the incident began at about 12:20 a.m. on March 31.

After he fell to the ground, Alvarez said, "Why are you shooting me?"

The shooting officer replied: "You had a gun."

Police said they attempted to stop and speak with Alvarez before he started running, which prompted the foot pursuit. In a Wednesday press conference with reporters, Superintendent David Brown said officers told COPA the initial reason for the stop, and it will be up to the agency to release it.

This is the second time in the past two weeks the Civilian Office of Police Accountability has published video showing a fatal shooting by an officer involved in a foot pursuit. Alvarez was shot just two days after another officer shot and killed 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Little Village. Toledo was also killed during a foot chase, which led Lightfoot to call for new department policy around foot pursuits. So far, no concrete changes have been proposed.

Police Superintendent David Brown told reporters last week they are working to get a final draft of that policy ready. On Wednesday, Brown said the policy is expected to be rolled out in the next few weeks.

A second video of the shooting recorded by a residential security camera shows one of the officers catch up to Alvarez and shout to "Drop the gun!" twice before firing five shots, striking Alvarez multiple times.

Alvarez did not fire his weapon at police and did not appear to point his gun in their direction.

The other officer at the scene did not turn his body camera on until immediately after the shooting.

As Alvarez lay on the ground, the officer who fired the shots tells his partner to "Cuff him! Cuff him!" But the other officer tells him to "Let me render aid!"

COPA recommended the officer who shot Alvarez be relieved of police powers during the rest of the investigation.

Warning: Graphic video

According to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office, an autopsy revealed Alvarez died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Alvarez family asked for peace in anticipation of the release of footage of the man's death.

Alvarez's family viewed the footage on Tuesday, according to the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.

"This tragic event provides further motivation for the expediency for reform for the city's foot pursuit policies," Lightfoot and the Alvarez family said in a joint statement.

Chicago police spokesman Tom Ahern shared a photo of the gun police said was recovered from Alvarez, but police have not said what led to the initial foot pursuit.

"The videos I saw do not explain what I saw in the morgue," Veronica Alvarez, Anthony's mother, told Fox32 Chicago in Spanish on Tuesday. "I want to know why they were chasing him. As of now I don’t have answers."

All of COPA's public materials and documents relating to the shooting can be found here.