A graphic Facebook livestream shows the moments leading to the shooting death of Brian Quinones, an aspiring hip-hop artist.
Quinones was shot dead by police officers in the suburb of Richfield, Minnesota on Saturday night. He live-streamed himself leading police on a chase through the streets of Edina and Richfield, according to The Star Tribune.
The Facebook video (which has since been taken down) showed Quinones driving while listening to music. He ran the first red light near York Avenue in Edina. He also appeared to intentionally run through other red lights and this led to a police chase through Edina and neighboring Richfield.
Quinones streamed the chase on Facebook Live for about 12 minutes before pulling over and jumping out of his car. The video showed him looking calm and relaxed during the chase. He bobbed his head to hip-hop music from his radio and occasionally sang along. He did not appear to be driving at high speeds during the chase.
Police cars eventually intercepted him and forced him to stop near the intersection of 77th Street East and Chicago Avenue in Richfield.
Officers shot and killed him after he jumped out of the car. According to The Star Tribune, he was holding something in his hand that appeared to be a knife when he exited his car. Officers shouted “Drop the knife! Drop the knife!” before he was shot multiple times.
#BREAKING – Tonight @EdinaPolice shot & killed a young man around 10:15 PM named Brian Quinones.
He was hit by multiple shots following a police pursuit.
He live streamed the pursuit. The stream includes over an hour of the aftermath of his death.
More info to come. pic.twitter.com/N9Xy0qARKC
— Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) September 8, 2019
For over six hours Brian Quinones' lifeless body laid behind his silver car on the median of 77th St. near 10th Ave. in Richfield, MN, after being shot at over a dozen times by police.
The medical examiner drove off with Brian around 4:30 AM.
Police tape still blocks the scene. pic.twitter.com/hStcxOhW39
— Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) September 8, 2019
Edina & Richfield police officers can be heard in the live stream video & police dispatch yelling for Brian to “Drop the knife“.
The police gave Quinones a mere .12 seconds to comply with their command before shooting an estimated 15 bullets at him.
NEW: https://t.co/ieP7Wrquf5 pic.twitter.com/1YNVX5CUYM
— Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) September 8, 2019
The Facebook live-stream reportedly continued for more than an hour after he was shot.
Although many Facebook users who saw the video agreed that he appeared to be holding something, it was not clear whether the object was a knife.
Police later released a statement about the incident:
“On Saturday, Sept. 7 at 10:22 p.m. a police pursuit that began in Edina, ended in an officer involved shooting near the intersection of 77th Street East and Chicago Avenue in Richfield. The incident involved officers from the Edina and Richfield Police departments. No officers were injured during the incident.”
Who was rapper Brian Quinones?
Quinones was originally from Ponce in Puerto Rico, but he lived in Minnesota for many years before his death. He attended high school in Burnsville and worked at General Mills. He also worked on the side as a barber. According to his friends, he was married and had a son.
He released his first album titled TIME on SoundCloud, under the name Blessed The MC, shortly before his death.
He described himself in his SoundCloud bio as an “aspiring hip-hop artist” whose inspiration came from artists such as J. Cole, Kanye, Jay Z, DMX, Kid Cudi, King Kendrick, and Bone Thugz.
“My music is my interpretation of the world. I see the good as I do the evil,” he wrote. “My lyrics can be profound at times, witty, catchy, inspiring, and everything inbetween.”
“My name ‘Blessed the MC’ comes from my perspective,” the bio continued. “They say you are what you think. Therefore, I am Blessed. I acknowledge my Gods gifts & it plays into the law of attraction.”
He appeared to have had personal issues weighing on his mind before his death on Saturday night. About an hour before the chase that led to his death, he posted the comment “So sorry” on Facebook, and in another post, he reflected on what he termed “pivotal moments” in life.
“In life… There are pivotal moments that propel you. Moments you’ve strived for since your inception…. You’ll feel and know when that moment has arrived. At that point its fight or flight in an instant. I wholeheartedly pray you fight through. Otherwise you’ll look in that rearview and realize you’ve reached your destination before you enjoyed your final sunset.”
Joshua Quinones, Brian’s younger brother, shares his grief. As for whether police could’ve police handled this differently? Here’s what Joshua has to say: pic.twitter.com/MHwfpsfKXm
— Iris Pérez (@msirisperez) September 8, 2019
The more I watch this #BrianQuinones video the more it becomes clear that this is a suicide by cop. He leads police on a low speed pursuit. Produces a knife and disobeys commands to drop it. All while he’s recording it? This was planned.
— BaconTakes (@BaconTakes) September 8, 2019
JUST IN: Hennepin County Medical Examiner ruled Brian Quinones manner of death a homicide. pic.twitter.com/6t5Aq8D9rl
— Iris Pérez (@msirisperez) September 8, 2019
[LIVE] Candlelight Vigil Honoring Brian Quinones Who Was Killed by #Minnesota Police https://t.co/0tuLRzTjN1
— Unicorn Riot (@UR_Ninja) September 8, 2019
Family and friends of Brian Quinones gathering near the spot where he was killed last night. The mother of their child just arrived, extremely distraught. His brother feels police could've handled things differently last night. @WCCO pic.twitter.com/EC8v7RzRav
— Jeff Wagner (@Jeff_Wagner4) September 8, 2019
Quinones’ friends, fans, and supporters have been mourning his death and expressing grief on Twitter. His brother Joshua reportedly admitted he was having suicidal thoughts before his death.
Joshua Quinones said his older brother, Brian Quinones, was having suicidal thoughts. Joshua said they talked yesterday and he even rushed to Brian's apt to check on him but he wasn't there. Brian was killed by police last night in Richfield after a pursuit. @WCCO pic.twitter.com/cNRiP9sN3x
— Jeff Wagner (@Jeff_Wagner4) September 8, 2019
Some Twitter users argued that his death was a case of “suicide by cop.” The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office is reportedly investigating the incident.