Teens beat St. Louis motorist to death with hammers in front of his wife

A woman in St. Louis says she watched her husband being beaten to death by teens with hammers.

"He pulled me out of the way and put himself in front of me, basically giving up his life for me," said Arijana Mujkanovic, whose husband, 32-year-old Zemir Begic, died Sunday morning from his injuries from the attack.

Police say Begic, a Bosnian man who moved to St. Louis this year, was in his car about 1:15 a.m. Sunday when several young people approached and began damaging it. When Begic got out of the car, they attacked him. He suffered injuries to his head, abdomen, face and mouth in the attack and was pronounced dead at a hospital.

About 50 people, mostly Bosnian, briefly blocked an intersection Sunday night in reaction to the murder.

The Post-Dispatch reports St. Louis police Chief Sam Dotson spoke with residents during the street protest. He said the killing did not appear to be motivated by race or ethnicity. A motive hasn't been released.

Police have arrested at least two teens who are suspects in the case.

The family has set up a GoFundMe memorial page.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.