Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins shared a heartbreaking Instagram post on Tuesday explaining the grisly details of how Illinois police shot and killed her mentally ill cousin, Eddie Russell Jr. last week.
Watkins called for justice for her cousin and accused the cops of lying and using "beyond excessive force" with military-grade equipment, including what she claimed was an AR-15.
"My Cousin Was Shot 18 Times Including the Face and Back of His Head," she wrote. "He Harmed NO ONE EVER! He Had Mental Health Issues AND THE COPS KNEW THAT! Anything he's ever Done Was minor and NON VIOLENT! Eddie Russell Jr -A Human-Being -A Son- Brother-Friend-Nephew - Cousin-HUMAN!"
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According to a statement posted by the Peoria Police Department on Facebook, officers responded to a call of an armed bank robbery in the area and identified Russell as the suspect. Russell then ran back to his home, where he stayed inside for nearly two hours as the police tried to lure him out.
The department claims that once Russell Jr. did exit the house, he "aggressively advanced toward SRT officers with a handgun." Officers then fired "approximately 18 shots." Coroners state Russell Jr. was struck "17-20 times." Each of the six officers involved have been placed on critical incident leave.
In her post, Watkins refuted the statement, claiming that her cousin didn't have a gun and that at no point did they try to de-escalate the situation using a negotiator trained in dealing with people with mental illnesses. She also stated that they police "USED" Russell Jr.'s mother to lure him out of the house by assuring her that they would "GIVE HIM THE HELP HE NEEDS."
"He Came Out Because He Heard His Mother and They used beyond excessive force to gun him down also with heavy artillery used in warfare," she wrote. "18 times? Shot eighteen times??? IF THEIR GOING ON WHAT HES HOLDING AT THE BANK THAT ISN'T A GUN...They Keep saying he had a gun! I don't see a gun in his hand at the bank they say he tried to rob! That's NOT A GUN!"
Now the question is did he have a gun? You tell me because I've never seen a gun like that before pic.twitter.com/Q8Y045RnFN
— Tionne T-Boz Watkins (@TheRealTBOZ) September 24, 2017
Watkins then claimed that the officers weren't wearing body cameras and then "lied and told family members Eddie Jr was at the hospital to get them away from the house knowing he was dead." She reports that they left his body outside for hours.
"He needs JUSTICE! His Mother and Father and Family need JUSTICE!!!!" she wrote. "This wasn't a hostage situation! He didn't threaten anyone's life! This was a mentally iLL young man who needed help and should have received just that!"
Watkins has also been asking for support on Twitter as she continues to share details from the tragedy.