The Los Angeles Police Department has suspended an officer and are currently investigating him after a video showed him punching a carjacking suspect.
At around 5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 14, Los Angeles Police officers along with back up from San Fernando Police Department responded to a call of grand theft auto with weapons involved.
Officer Punched Suspect After He Spat on Him
When officers arrived at the scene, they located the vehicle after it was involved in a collision with a wall. According to KNN, LAPD air unit support assisted officers in locating the suspects, who were apprehended and arrested after they tried to flee on foot from the crashed SUV.
While one of the suspects was being transported to the rescue ambulance, he taunted and spit on a nearby officer while being strapped and handcuffed to the gurney. The officer responded with a punch to the suspect's face. "Don't do that sh*t ever again with any officer," the officer is heard saying in video footage obtained by KNN.
Other officers at the scene then pulled the officer away from the suspect and can be heard asking for a spit mask to prevent the suspect from spitting again. Watch the video below:
LAPD 'Deeply Disturbed' by the Video, Officer Relieved of Duty
The LAPD said in a press release that they learned of the video on Sunday and launched an investigation into the conduct of the officer, who was relieved of duty and sent home, pending the results of the investigation, according to the statement.The officer has not yet been identified.
"The images in the video are deeply disturbing and while we must wait for the investigation to be completed, the Department will act swiftly in any instance of excessive or unnecessary force," LAPD Chief Michel Moore said in a statement.
Last month, an Atlanta sergeant was placed on unpaid leave after a video surfaced on social media showing him kicking a handcuffed woman in the head after she spit on him. The accompanying officer was also suspended from duty for failing to intervene, as previously reported.
