Three police officers in the southern United States were suspended and under investigation after the disclosure of a video showing them to hit to a person during an arrest in the state of Arkansas.
The video, which went viral on social networks, was recorded by a pedestrian near the city of mulberry, northwest of Little Rock, Sunday. And it shows the three officers holding and attacking a man who is on the ground: they kick him several times and hit him violently in the face.
While one of the policemen punches him relentlessly in the face, another kicks him in the body and the third helps to restrain the arrested.
“This is serious,” an off-screen person is heard saying. When passersby try to approach the police, one of them orders them to “stay away“.
This latest incident of police brutality caught on a cellphone sparked outrage and anger in the United States, still marred by the death of George Floyd, a black man suffocated by a white police officer in Minneapolis in May 2020.
According to local media, the violent arrest took place on Sunday in front of a shop. And for the excessive use of force, the Arkansas State Police launched a internal investigation.
Mulberry Mayor Gary Baxter announced that one of the officers had been placed on “administrative leave” pending the outcome of the investigation.
While also the other two police officers, Crawford County employees have been suspendedaccording to Arkansas police sources.
The man in the apartment, 27-year-old Randall Worcester, was taken to hospital before being jailed, authorities said.
Local television station 40/29 News said Worcester has been charged with a number of crimes including beatings, assault and resisting arrest. The man was reportedly arrested after threatening a gas station employee.
“He initially cooperated with the officers before attempting to attack them,” said Crawford County Sheriff Jimmy Damante, who did not say whether the defendant was armed or not.
The sheriff reported that the arrested had threatened a gas station employee and who was intercepted by police officers when he tried to escape by bicycle. According to the police, the detainee tried to escape and even attacked one of the officers.
As reported by the NPR radio network, a Tik Tok user named Naomi Johnson uploaded the video with a message: “My sister witnessed this today.”
The video was censored by Tik Tok, although it went viral through the social network Twitter.
With information from agencies
Source: Clarin
