BUFFALO, NY — A review of the surveillance video which captured the police shooting of Rafael ‘Pito’ Rivera appears to show something, possibly a weapon, sliding away from him as he falls after being fatally wounded.
2 On Your Side was able to look at the much talked about video on a tablet which enabled us to zoom in on portions of the footage. To get access to the video, we agreed not to make a copy or disclose how we came to see it.
As previously reported by Jim Heaney of Investigative Post, who viewed the same video over the weekend, the video is from a surveillance camera on the former School 77 along Plymouth Avenue on Buffalo’s west side.
In the 11-second clip, we see Rivera appear around a fence. He then appears to trip over a curb, stumble and then fall in a parking lot.
Then, a police officer follows. It appears the officer has drawn his service weapon. That officer has been identified as Elmur Karadzhayev.
Rivera crawls away from the officer, stopping about eight feet later. He can then be seen making a downward motion with one arm. A police source says that was Rivera unsuccessfully attempting to shove a gun into a storm drain. 2 On Your Side has previously reported a fully loaded 9mm Smith and Wesson handgun was recovered at the shooting scene.
Then, Rivera gets up and starts running away from the officer again. The video appears to show muzzle flashed from shots being fired. A police source says from this spot on the parking lot is where Karadzhayev fired six shots - the only shots fired in this incident. We are also told six shell casings were recovered from this location.
Rivera falls a second time. When zoomed into Rivera at this moment, a dark shadow can be seen moving away from Rivera a short distance. Our police source says that was the gun Rivera was carrying.
When other officers arrive, one is carrying a flash-light. When the beam sweeps the shooting scene and falls on the apparent object near Rivera, it reflects the light.
Karadzhayev and another officer handcuff Rivera and step away from him.
Our police sources says Rivera was hit with three shots. One bullet grazed his forehead. Another entered in the front of his torso. The likely fatal shot entered Rivera’s back severing his spine and dislodging his aorta, the body’s main artery.