The Justice Department said Tuesday it has opened a civil rights investigation into the death of a black man who nder mysterious circumstances after arrested by Baltimore police.

The Justice Department said Tuesday it has opened a civil rights investigation into the death of Freddie Gray, a black man who suffered a fatal spinal-cord injury under mysterious circumstances after he was handcuffed and put in the back of a police van in Baltimore.

Questions are swirling around just what happened to Gray, who died Sunday — a week after he was chased and restrained by police officers, and suffered a spine injury, which later killed him, in their custody.

The police say they have no evidence that their officers used force. A lawyer for Mr. Gray’s family accuses the department of a cover-up, and on Tuesday the Justice Department opened a civil rights inquiry into his death.

Chanting “Black Lives Matter” and “Justice for Freddie,” angry residents, led by a prominent pastor and Gray’s grieving family, marched Tuesday evening on the block where Mr. Gray was arrested, New York Times reported.

But as protests continued Tuesday night, the death has also fueled debate on whether African-American leadership here can better handle accusations of police brutality than cities like Ferguson, Mo., and North Charleston, S.C., with their white-dominated governments.

This week Baltimore mayor and police commissioner have appeared repeatedly in public promising a full and transparent review of Gray’s death.

On Tuesday, the police released the names of six officers who had been suspended with pay, including a lieutenant, a woman and three officers in their 20s who joined the force less than three years ago. Officers canvassed west Baltimore, looking for witnesses.