New Lenox Police Accused Of Dumping Man In Parking Lot After He Was Released From Hospital; He Was Then Hit By Car
NEW LENOX, Ill. (CBS) -- The New Lenox Police Department stood accused Wednesday of dumping a man in a dark, desolate parking lot after he was treated at a hospital for a mental health episode.
Body cam video shows officers dropping off Qusai Alkafaween in Orland Park. The 24-year-old college student from Jordan had just been discharged from Silver Cross Hospital.
It was December, and Alkafaween had no coat and no cellphone.
An officer is heard asking Alkafaween if he knows where he is going as they are about to drop him off, and he says no. The officer says, "You live in Orland Park, right?" and Alkafaween asks, "You want to help me with that?"
The officer says, "This is as far as I can take you right now."
After walking for 30-minutes, Alakafaween wandered into traffic and was hit by a car – suffering a traumatic brain injury.
"They made a decision to bring this young man to an abandoned parking lot and simply just abandon him at midnight – with instructions from police officers to just start walking," said attorney Jack Casciato.
New Lenox police are only confirming officers took Alkafaween to Orland Park. The hospital did not respond to requests for comment.