An unarmed 22-year-old man who was on his knees with his hands up was shot dead by a Police officer in the city of Vallejo in Carlifornia on Monday night, June 1.

The incident was said to have happened outside a Walgreens store in Northern Carlifornia, amid local and national protests against police brutality.

According to reports, the officer was responding to a call of alleged looting when he shot the unarmed man who he believed had a gun ut later determined he had a hammer in his pocket, officials said.

“When confronted by the police, he dropped to his knees and surrendered, and they fired at him,” said Melissa Nold, a Vallejo civil rights attorney representing Monterrosa’s family.

“He wasn’t doing anything to warrant it. They shot him from inside their car. What opportunity did they give him to survive that situation? … It’s egregiously bad.”

The Police chief, Shawny Williams declined to identify the officer who killed Monterrosa, saying only that the officer was an 18-year veteran of the force.

The killing of Monterrosa, who lived in San Francisco, has sparked intense outrage in the Bay Area, particularly in the city of Vallejo, a city with a long history of police violence and high-profile killings and excessive force complaints, The Guardian reports