"I just want justice": Students help lead call for answers in the death of Khalil Azad
MINNEAPOLIS – Students are helping lead a call for answers surrounding a man's death.
Teenagers walked out of their classrooms Monday to join a rally for Khalil Azad. Investigators say the 24-year-old man drowned in Crystal Lake after running from Robbinsdale police last summer.
But Azad's family and some community members say they don't believe that's the truth.
Hundreds of students from dozens of high schools descended on U.S. Bank Stadium Monday to raise their voices in support of a family searching for answers.
RELATED: Robbinsdale police asks BCA for independent review of Khalil Azad's death
Azad's mother says she is not satisfied with what investigators say happened to her son during a traffic stop in Robbinsdale back in July of 2022.
"I just want justice and I want answers," said Fatomeh Azad.
According to Robbinsdale police, officers attempted to make a DWI traffic stop. After a short chase, the car came to a stop and the male driver jumped out and ran. A search of the area, which included canine officers, turned up nothing, according to police.
Two days after the traffic stop, Azad's body was pulled from the lake. His death was ruled a freshwater drowning by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office.
"Khalil's body was brutally disposed of, and we can see that with our own eyes," said Toshira Garraway, founder of Families Supporting Families Against Police Violence.
Graphic pictures of Azad's body are circulating on social media, leading some who have seen them to question what police say happened.
"We all know looking at those pictures there is something that needs to be done and it shouldn't keep happening," said Ayisha Johnson.
"We know that some of those qualities in his image was from the drowning, right? But we also seen other parts of the body that we believe has led from police brutality and also the canine. But until we can have proper support and review the body camera footage, and have proper support from our community and attorneys, we cannot prove that. But today we stand in solidarity with the family," said Jerome Richardson.
Police say they are confident there was no wrongdoing, and they welcome the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension's probe into this matter.
Azad's family is pursuing an independent autopsy. Teen activists are demanding the release of all body camera video and investigations into the agencies involved.
Police tell WCCO they will release body and squad camera video within 24 hours.