WARREN (WWJ) - Two officers with the Warren Police Department are the subject of an investigation over the arrest of an alleged auto thief last week after the officers were caught on camera appearing to wrestle and kick the suspect.
The Warren Police Department said the incident occurred on June 2, near Chester and Shevlin streets after the suspect led police on a car chase in a stolen vehicle before crashing.
Police said the officers took the man into custody and found a large amount of illegal marijuana and a gun inside the vehicle, but it's how the officers arrested the man that has drawn sharp criticism.
A video of the arrest recorded on bystander Christian Rose's phone showed the officers pulling the suspect out of the vehicle and wrestling with him on the ground.
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Rose said to WDIV that he saw an officer start to stomp on the back of the suspect's knee as if he was trying to break the man's leg.
“Once I saw him stomping on him, I stopped recording,” Rose said to WDIV. “I got one of the guy’s attention. He told me to get out of there. He got the other people off of him, and then he turned around and left.”
Rose posted the video to social media where it immediately drew angry responses from viewers.
Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer said his department was looking at body cam footage to determine what happened during the arrest; one of the officers involved in the incident has been placed on administrative leave as of June 6 and internal affairs will be reviewing the case.
"I certainly understand the concern of citizens regarding events such as this and I'm committed to transparency with the public as always," Dwyer said to WWJ's Sandra McNeill.
He asked for the public's patience while they fully investigate the incident; Dwyer said the department will release body cam footage at a later date.
The suspect was not listed in any condition and appears to be OK after the arrest, WDIV reported.
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Rose said while he understood the need to remove the suspect from the streets, there was no need for the roughness seen in the video.
“If I was two seconds earlier, that guy could have hit and possibly killed me,” Rose said. “So, I’m not going to defend him. But, I’m not going to defend the police. I feel like the police did a really good job until they actually had the guy.”
Rose told WDIV that he pulled out his phone and hit record to hold the police accountable — he said he wants departments to change their tactics so incidents like this do not keep happening.
“That’s the America I really believe in,” Rose said. “Because that’s the America that I was raised to believe in. We also know the real America that we live in.”
The suspect connected to the incident is facing numerous charges, including fleeing and eluding police, drug and weapon charges.
