Investigation underway after video shows NYPD officer boxing with suspect in Harlem
NEW YORK (WABC) --
The NYPD is investigating a videotaped confrontation between an officer and a suspect on the street.
Authorities are trying to determine whether the force used was justified.
The incident occurred Wednesday on Frederick Douglass Boulevard between West 130th and West 131st streets in Harlem.
The video was shot by a bystander, clearly showing the officer starting a kind of boxing match with the suspect.
The man had been arrested for resisting arrest, among other charges.
The video first shows 30-year old George Saykou getting his wallet out for police. What's not seen is how it all started.
The incident escalated to pushing and shoving between the suspect and the officer, who shoves the man several times to keep him at the scene.
Then the officer punches the suspect. His female partner, just inches away, calls for backup, all while another man is recording it on his cellphone.
From there they raised their dukes, circling one another and throwing punches.
Minutes later responding officers show up, and tackle the suspect to the ground.
Police Commissioner William Bratton saw the video and the NYPD is reviewing the action of the boxing officer's partner.
The incident is under review by internal affairs, but Bratton said his preliminary review found "nothing inappropriate with the officer's behavior."
"The initial encounter with the individual, all he has to do was surrender. And we would not have had an encounter. He did not surrender and he now has additional charges against him. We will process it through the courts," said Bratton.
But family members, including the suspect's grandmother, call it a clear case of police brutality.
NEW YORK (WABC) --
The NYPD is investigating a videotaped confrontation between an officer and a suspect on the street.
Authorities are trying to determine whether the force used was justified.
The incident occurred Wednesday on Frederick Douglass Boulevard between West 130th and West 131st streets in Harlem.
The video was shot by a bystander, clearly showing the officer starting a kind of boxing match with the suspect.
The man had been arrested for resisting arrest, among other charges.
The video first shows 30-year old George Saykou getting his wallet out for police. What's not seen is how it all started.
The incident escalated to pushing and shoving between the suspect and the officer, who shoves the man several times to keep him at the scene.
Then the officer punches the suspect. His female partner, just inches away, calls for backup, all while another man is recording it on his cellphone.
From there they raised their dukes, circling one another and throwing punches.
Minutes later responding officers show up, and tackle the suspect to the ground.
Police Commissioner William Bratton saw the video and the NYPD is reviewing the action of the boxing officer's partner.
The incident is under review by internal affairs, but Bratton said his preliminary review found "nothing inappropriate with the officer's behavior."
"The initial encounter with the individual, all he has to do was surrender. And we would not have had an encounter. He did not surrender and he now has additional charges against him. We will process it through the courts," said Bratton.
But family members, including the suspect's grandmother, call it a clear case of police brutality.
