St. Ann police shot and killed a 37-year-old man in Bel-Ridge early Wednesday.
The St. Ann Police Department asked the North County Police Cooperative to investigate.
Police identified the victim as Troy Christopher Hamilton of Bel-Ridge.
Investigators said St. John officers attempted to stop Hamilton for a stop sign violation near St. Charles Rock Road and North and South Road. They said Hamilton failed to stop, ignored emergency sirens and lights and drove away.
St. Ann police officers joined the pursuit, using a GPS tracking device. Officers located Hamilton near the 3300 block of Welsberg in Bel-Ridge. They said he exited the vehicle and ran toward his home. Investigators said they learned Hamilton was armed with a stolen firearm.
St. Ann officers followed Hamilton onto his porch, where they said a physical altercation occurred and police soon after shot and killed him. Two officers fired shots.
Britny Boyd, Hamilton’s wife, told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that her husband was a protector and provider and that if the police had knocked on the door, she would have let them in to discuss the situation.
Charles Hamilton, the victim’s father, wrote in a Facebook post around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday that the St. Ann police officer shot his son twice in the back while he was on the porch and that at the time he was still waiting to see his son’s body.
“He’s laying dead covered up with no details,” Charles Hamilton wrote on social media. “They won’t even let me see him, saying I can’t see him until the funeral home picks him up! I don’t know what to do as I’m still in shock!!!”
This story has been updated with information from a Wednesday afternoon press briefing by the North County Police Cooperative.
