A 19-year-old wielding a ‘black rifle’ outside his home in Los Angeles was shot dead by an LAPD officer in front of his horrified mother, only to discover that it was just a toy.

Police reportedly arrived at Luis Herrera’s home on September 17 after he called 911 to report that his father had been abusing him and his mother but the call was later proved to be untruthful.

Bodycam footage shows two officers approaching the property when they saw Herrera holding what appeared like a black rifle.

Officers quickly retreated and hid behind trash cans. They can be heard shouting: “Let go of that gun!” and “Put that down, put that down!”

But the teen ignored the command and refused to drop the ‘rifle,’ so officers started shooting at him.

The bodycam footage shows the moment Herrera fell to the ground.

The weapon in question turned out to be an Airsoft gun, a BB-style toy that shoots plastic projectiles.

Another video shared by the LAPD shows footage from Herrera’s backyard. The video shows the reaction of his family to the shooting.

LAPD spokesperson Captain Kelly Muniz described the event presented in the video, saying: “He did not comply with officers commands and shouldered the rifle and pointed directly at the officers resulting in an officer-involved shooting.”

It also shows an officer approaching the teen and handcuffing him after the shooting incident.

When Herrera was rolled over, a pistol was found under his body but it was also an Airsoft gun.

His mother can be heard screaming in the background, saying: “Why did they assault him? That’s my son!”

Herrera’s father, Vincent Herrera, also told officers that the weapon was just a toy.

Speaking to the Los Angeles Times, Vincent said that the day after his son was shot, they had an argument over his dog.

“He hit my dog and we argued. I said the dog is like a little kid, don’t hit it.”

Vincent also described his son as immature and quiet, admitting that the argument they had was out of character.

“I don’t know what happened in his mind,” he added.

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