Protesters gather in St Louis after police shoot and kill black suspect

Police claim they shot the man after he opened fire at them

Police gathered at the scene of the shooting in north St Louis

Protesters have gathered in a St Louis suburb after police shot and killed a local resident.

Reports said officers shot the person at the intersection of Walton Avenue and Page Boulevard in the city’s Fountain Park neighbourhood.

The intersection has been blocked off, and Police Chief Sam Dotson is among the large group of officers at the scene, the St Louis Dispatch reported.

Police have not identified the man they shot but said he was black. They said they were serving a warrant on him and that they shot him after he opened fired on them.

Police claimed they recovered crack cocaine and four guns that the man had in his possession.

Police have not identified the dead man, but described him as black and in his mid-20s.

Witnesses said they heard gunshots and saw police with guns drawn. Details on the shooting have not yet been released, the paper said.

The shooting came as protesters marked the killing of Kajieme Powell, 25, who was shit by officers in August 2014. The young black man, who suffered from mental health problems, was shot after walking towards officers while carrying a knife.

Joe Robinson, 37, who works with Better Family Life community outreach, was one of about a dozen people protesting over Wednesday’s shooting. He was holding a sign that read: “We must stop killing each other.”

“The sign says it all," said Mr Robinson.