THE devastated father of a 12-year-old boy shot dead by Cleveland police after he allegedly pulled out a BB gun from his waistband has condemned the officers for their actions.

Gregory Henderson, whose son Tamir Rice died in hospital on Sunday, said the youngster had his whole life ahead of him when he was gunned down outside a leisure centre.

He said: "Who would have thought he would go so soon? He had his whole life ahead. To be 12 years old, he doesn't know what he's doing. Police, they know what they're doing."

Mr Henderson added he was still shocked at the death of his "superhero", whom he described as a keen basketball player who was tall for his age, polite and "very artistic".

He said he wished police had Tasered his son instead of immediately shooting him.

Tamir had been spotted waving around the BB gun at a playground next to the leisure centre by an eyewitness who called police but told the dispatcher the pistol was "probably a fake one".

Minutes later, two Cleveland Police officers - a rookie and a 10-15 year veteran -arrived at the scene, where they apparently saw Tamir pick up the gun from a table and put it in his waistband.

The rookie then asked the boy to put his hands up, at which point the youngster reached into his waistband and pulled out the pistol, Police Patrolmen's Association President Jeffrey Follmer said.

Despite the 911 caller's prior warning that the gun was probably a fake, the officer then fired two shots at Tamir, at least one of which hit him in the stomach.

Union officials claimed the officers - one of whom was later taken to hospital with an ankle injury - had acted responsibly.