A video posted online shows a group of American police officers fatally shot a homeless man.

The armature video showed the police officers scuffle with a man standing on a sidewalk in Skid Row area near downtown on Sunday.

The man remained on the ground while at least one of the officers opened fire.

The cause of the shooting is not clear, but five gunshots can be heard in the footage.

The homeless man was declared dead at a hospital shortly after the shooting, said police spokesman Sergeant Barry Montgomery.

He was identified by witnesses at the scene by his street name “Africa.”

Witness Dennis Horne told the Los Angeles Times that when Africa refused to comply with a police order to come out of the tent, the officers used a taser on him and dragged him out. He, however, continued to struggle that led to the shooting.

“It’s sad,” the witness said. “There’s no justification to take somebody’s life.” (…)

According to local sources, tension in the area remained high for hours after the incident.