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Disturbing body cam footage showing the moment an unarmed man was shot dead by a US police officer while he pleaded for his life has been released by a US court

The ruling to release the footage showing the death of father-of-two Daniel Shaver came after a former Arizona police officer was cleared of his murder.

Father-of-two Mr Shaver can be heard sobbing and begging "please don't kill me" before he is shot five times by an officer in La Quinta Hotel, Arizona.

Philip Mitchell Brailsford, 27, was found not guilty of murder on Thursday after the fatal shooting in 2016, but Mr Shaver's have described the killing as an "execution".

Footage finally released by the judge shows the encounter. In harrowing scenes, Mr Shaver crawls towards the officer pleading for his life before Mr Brailsford opens fire.

The shooting occurred in Mesa, Phoenix after officers responded to a call that a person was pointing a gun out of a window of the hotel.

Police ordered Mr Shaver to leave his hotel room, lie face-down in the hallway and not make any sudden movements.

The officers warned Mr Shaver frequently that he could be shot if he made any sudden movements or failed to obey their commands.

Mr Shaver, 26, can be heard sobbing in the video as he begs police not to shoot and crawls towards the officers.

He can be heard saying: "Please do not shoot me."

As he makes his way towards the officers he reaches towards the waistband of his shorts and Mr Brailsford opens fire, hitting him five times and killing him instantly.

Mr Brailsford said he fired his rifle as he believed Mr Shaver was reaching for a handgun from his waistband.

No gun was found on Shaver's body, but two pellet rifles related to his pest-control job were later found in his room.

The detective investigating the shooting agreed the movement appeared like Mr Shaver was reaching for a pistol, but also noted that it looked like Mr Shaver was pulling up his shorts.

The newly-released footage has been met with outrage online, with many branding the encounter "disgusting", "sick" and "horrifying".

Mr Shaver's widow, Laney Sweet, and his parents have filed wrongful-death lawsuits against the city of Mesa over the shooting death.

Mr Shaver's family's lawyer Mark Geragos described the shooting as "an execution pure and simple.

After the verdict was read he said: "The justice system miserably failed Daniel and his family."

During his trial testimony, Mr Brailsford described the stress that he faced in responding to the call and his split-second decision to shoot Shaver.

Mr Brailsford told jurors that he was terrified for the safety of officers and a woman who in the hallway. He also said he felt "incredibly sad" for Shaver.​