‘I have to bury my son’: Richmond mother speaks out after teen dies following police raid

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — A Richmond mother is mourning the loss of her 16-year-old son, Leon Bowling, who police say they believe fatally shot himself during a police raid Wednesday morning. In an exclusive interview with 8News, she shared just how drastically her life has changed in just 24 hours.

Chelay Clark said she last saw her son on Sunday, Aug. 17 -- just three days before his sudden death.

“I said, 'I love you,' [and] he said 'I love you, too, mom,'” she said of their last words to each other.

Bowling, who Clark said was a straight-A student at Richmond High School for the Arts, lived at Belt Atlantic Apartments on Midlothian Turnpike with his grandmother.

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Just before 6 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 20, officers with the Richmond Police Department and the city's SWAT Team attempted to execute a search warrant at the apartment complex. Police said it was part of an ongoing investigation into illegal firearms.

"I wouldn't really know what they were going in there for -- I don't know," Clark said. "I just know that my son is gone and I have to bury my son."

Leon Bowling. (Photo: Chelay Clark)

Childhood photo of Leon Bowling. (Photo: Chelay Clark)

Police said that, while officers were outside the apartment, gunshots came from inside. When officers entered, they said they saw blood under a closed bedroom door.

Once inside the bedroom, they found Bowling there with a gunshot wound that detectives believe to be self-inflicted.

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According to police, no officers fired their weapons during the incident.

Clark said that the chaos of a SWAT team at the door, so early in the morning, would be overwhelming for anyone -- but her son had a diagnosed mental disorder.

"He was my little boy," Clark said. “He was scared. I’m not saying that what he was doing was right. But they could have done it a different way, if they were watching him so closely.”

As the family grapples with this devastating and sudden loss, Clark said she is considering hiring a private investigator, because she feels there may be more to the story.

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“The loss of a young life is always tragic, and my deepest condolences go out to the family,” said Police Chief Rick Edwards in a statement on Thursday.

Police are asking that anyone with more information contact the department as the investigation continues. You can do so by calling 804-646-5324.