File Photo | Credit: Waukegan Police Department.

A teenager, who was in the passenger seat of a car, was shot and killed by a Waukegan police officer who opened fire on the car after it reversed in the officer’s direction, officials said.

A police officer with the Waukegan Police Department was investigating an occupied vehicle near Liberty Street and Oak Street around 11:55 p.m. Tuesday.

Waukegan Police Department Cmdr. Edgar Navarro said that the vehicle was occupied by two people and the car fled from the officer.

Moments later, a second police officer spotted the vehicle near Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and South Avenue in Waukegan.

The officer approached the vehicle and it began to reverse, Navarro said, adding that the officer then fired his pistol in fear of his safety.

The driver, identified as a woman in her 20s from Waukegan, and the passenger, a male in his late teens from Waukegan, both sustained gunshot wounds.

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The teen was transported to an area hospital where he later was pronounced dead, Navarro said.

The woman was transported to an area hospital in serious condition. She is expected to recover.

The Lake County Coroner’s Office has scheduled an autopsy for later Wednesday afternoon on the teen.

Waukegan Police Chief Wayne Walles requested the Illinois State Police to investigate the shooting, Navarro said.

No guns were found in the vehicle and Waukegan police officers are equipped with both body cameras and squad car dash cameras.

Both officers involved each have five years of experience with the Waukegan Police Department. A press conference is being held at the Waukegan Police Department around 4 p.m. Wednesday.