MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US: Three police officers suspended after being recorded beating up a man on the ground

Frame of the video

Three police officers in Arkansas, United States, were suspended on Sunday after a video was made public in which they are seen beating a man they had arrested, local media reported.

The video, which went viral on social media, shows the detainee immobilized to the ground by the three officers. One of them hits him on several occasions and even bangs his head against the ground, another kicks him in the body and the third helps to keep him still.

Crawford sheriff dept Arkansas pic.twitter.com/KZAmwzwwmV

— Naomi Johnson (@NaomiRHelm) August 21, 2022

Two of the officers are Crawford County Sheriff's deputies and the third is a police officer from Mulberry, a town in Crawford County.

The Arkansas State Police will investigate, Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson confirmed in a message on Twitter.

Crawford Police Chief James Damante confirmed the suspension of the officers.

“Appropriate action will be taken on this matter,” Damante assured, and in the same line the Mulberry Police pronounced about their officer.

As reported by the NPR radio network, a TikTok user named Naomi Johnson posted the video on this social network with a message: “My sister witnessed this today”. Her video has been removed from the said network, although it appears in numerous messages on Twitter.

Police sources told local media that the event occurred after police in the town of Alma received a tip-off about a man who was threatening a store clerk with “cutting his face off” and launching “terrorist” messages.

The man left the store and rode his bike down a road until he was intercepted by officers. According to police, the detainee tried to flee and even assaulted one of the officers.

The man is in police custody after being taken to a hospital with injuries that have not been detailed and is being charged with several counts, including assault and terroristic threats.

Based on information from EFE