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 The man who was in the car with Walter Scott before a South Carolina cop shot him to death said Monday that he doesn't know why Scott ran from North Charleston Officer Michael Slager, "but I know he didn't deserve to die." 
 
 The man, Pierre D. Fulton, was publicly identified Monday as the passenger in Scott's car when Scott he was pulled over April 4. 
 
 He has been questioned by investigators but has refused all news interview requests. In a one-paragraph statement released Monday through his lawyer, Fulton called Scott a "dear friend" who had helped him "become a better man and showed me the value of hard work" over the last five years. He didn't elaborate. 
 
 "I'll never know why he ran, but I know he didn't deserve to die," Fulton said. "Please keep Walter and his family in your prayers and respect my privacy moving forward." 
 
 His lawyer said that would be his only public statement. 
 
 Slager, 33, is charged with murder in the death of Scott, 50, who was recorded on video being shot eight times even though he appeared unarmed and was running away from Slager. 
 
 Pierre D. Fulton Peper Law Firm 
 
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 #WalterScott's passenger, Pierre D. Fulton, has been convicted on drug and weapon charges previously. http://t.co/1NJBevwdyA — The Post and Courier (@postandcourier) April 13, 2015 
 
 — M. Alex Johnson and Gabe Gutierrez ||||| The man who was a passenger in the car that Walter Scott was driving before he was shot by a South Carolina police officer says he'll never understand why his friend ran. 
 
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 "Walter was a dear friend and I miss him every day," said Pierre Fulton, in a statement through his lawyer issued tonight. "Over the past five years he helped me to become a better man and showed me the value of hard work." 
 
 But Fulton said, "I'll never know why he ran, but I know he didn't deserve to die. Please keep Walter and his family in your prayers and respect my privacy moving forward." 
 
 Then-Officer Michael Slager shot at Scott eight times after he ran from the vehicle April 4 during a routine traffic stop. 
 
 Slager has not yet had to enter a plea to the murder charge against him and his attorney has declined to publicly comment on the case, except to say that they are conducting their own investigation into the incident.
– Why Walter Scott bolted during a routine traffic stop is a mystery even to Pierre Fulton, the man in the Mercedes with Scott when he was pulled over by South Carolina police officer Michael Slager. "Walter was a dear friend and I miss him every day," Fulton says in a statement released by his attorney yesterday, per ABC News. "I'll never know why he ran, but I know he didn't deserve to die. Please keep Walter and his family in your prayers and respect my privacy moving forward." He appears serious about his privacy: Fulton's lawyer says his client won't be speaking further on the matter, NBC News reports. He's already been grilled by investigators, per NBC, and has turned down all news interviews.