Family of 16-Year-Old Teenager Seeks Answers After Police Held Him at Gunpoint While Unarmed

A teenage boy, Rykeem Johnson, recently spoke up about having the police point a gun and detain him following a misunderstanding between the authorities and a caller.

The Arlington Police Department had confirmed responding to the incident on Monday afternoon at an apartment complex in Arlington, Texas. The authorities said they received a 911 call about a man garbed in a hoodie and standing outside the door while holding a gun that was partly covered by a towel. The man was allegedly looking through the peephole of the caller's door, scaring him.

The caller advised the police that he had received numerous threats from a person via social media and believed it was the person at his door, per WFAA.

A terrifying and traumatic experience for the teen

According to the apartment complex resident, Johnson, 16, he came from a pool that afternoon and was about to go home, so he went to the third floor of the building when suddenly two police officers arrived. Authorities said the young man matched the suspect's description, as he was wearing a hoodie and holding a towel.

Johnson froze as officers pointed their firearms at him from their position on the ground. At first, he didn't understand what the police were talking about as they told him to put his weapon down even though he didn't have one. He confessed he was terrified, and he couldn't move his body as he was shocked and terrified at the same time.

When the boy didn't respond to the authorities' verbal commands, the officers called for backup, and the police department's tactical unit arrived at the scene. One of the police got his rifle and pointed it directly at the teenager, which scared Johnson more. He recalled that his body started shaking, and he couldn't move. His body felt stiff, and he constantly asked himself what he should do as he was confused and didn't know what was happening, per ABC News.

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A huge misunderstanding 

The SWAT (Special Weapons And Tactics) team eventually got the teen to show his hands and come down the stairs. The officers handcuffed him and placed him in a patrol car.

However, the officers later determined that the teen was unarmed and was not the same person making social media threats to the 911 caller, so he was let go. According to the young man, the only thing that was said to him was sorry for the misunderstanding. However, the apology wasn't enough as the police held him at gunpoint, and he got scared for his life. Johnson was released to his older brother and guardian, Relius Johnson, who had rushed home from work after receiving a call from an officer advising residents to shelter in place.

The victim's brother didn't realize at first that his brother was the one being detained by the police. When he spoke to his brother after getting the call, the teenager sounded panicked and started asking for help to save him as they were trying to shoot him. Relius told the officers several times that they had the wrong person and said that his brother was innocent and didn't do anything wrong. Fortunately, he reached the SWAT commander.

According to the police, no physical force was used in the detention, per Dallas News.

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