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Ferguson protest: One injured in gunfire in area near where Michael Brown was killed

The shooting comes as racial tensions simmer in Baltimore

Kashmira Gander
Wednesday 29 April 2015 05:05 EDT
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A demonstrator marching last year in protest against the shooting of Michael Brown
A demonstrator marching last year in protest against the shooting of Michael Brown (JEWEL SAMAD/AFP/Getty Images)

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Two men have been injured by rounds of gunfire amid a protest in Ferguson, Missouri, over the fatal police shooting of an unarmed black teenager last August.

Around 50 people gathered at West Florissant Avenue, near the site where Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson police officer, shot dead black teenager Michael Brown.

One man suffered a gunshot wound to the leg, and was carried to safety by bystanders at around 11:50pm local time, the St Lois Post-Dispatch reported.

A further victim was wounded in a shooting on Windward Court, where protesters were moved after police ordered them to move from West Florissant Avenue.

St Louis city Alderman Antonio French tweeted that a man was also shot in the neck, and was taken to hospital.

In a disturbing video of the shooting shared by Mr French, protesters are heard screaming in fear as they flee the scene.

Police who were monitoring the protest took one person into custody and recovered a gun following the initial shooting.

It wasn't immediately clear whether the violence was related to the protest.

A message seeking comment from Ferguson police wasn't immediately returned. A spokesman for St Louis County police told the Associated Press that he had no immediate details.

Jeff Small, a spokesman for the city of Ferguson, told CNN: "At this point police are not sure if the [shootings are] linked to the protest or not."

The protesters chanted "No justice, no peace" and "Hey, hey, ho, ho. These killer cops have got to go" in Ferguson, as much larger demonstrations took place in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, over the death of a young black man, Freddie Gray, 25, in police custody.

Footage posted by Mr French prior to the shooting shows tensions flaring between the protesters and the police. Demonstrators are seen throwing rocks at a SWAT vehicle as police accuse the crowd of being "unlawfully assembled".

By around 1am local time, a small group of demonstrators remained in the area, setting fire to a portable toilet and rubbish bins in West Florissant Avenue.

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