Exclusive video shows Francis Romaine punched repeatedly by NYPD officers during arrest
NEW YORK - The NYPD has launched an internal investigation after video emerged showing officers punching a suspect as they placed him under arrest.
Video exclusively obtained by CBS2 shows officers from the 40th Precinct holding the man's hands back as another repeatedly punches him in the head.
The exclusive video shows the violent arrest of a Black man by NYPD officers.
It happened at Prospect Avenue and East 149th Street Sunday, April 16. Video shows a man in a white shirt getting up in the face of an NYPD officer. In a matter of seconds, four officers surrounded him. Three officers held his arms down as one repeatedly punched him in the head before throwing him to the ground. A female officer appears to employ the unauthorized tactic of leaning on the man's neck to make the arrest.
The NYPD said officers were conducting an investigation when 29-year-old Francis Romaine approached them "aggressively," and refused multiple orders to back away. When officers tried to arrest him, police say Romaine choked a sergeant.
"The police officer who started punching the guy in the face, that's very problematic," former federal prosecutor David Schwartz said.
Schwartz also said the video doesn't tell the whole story.
"You can never quite tell from a video how bad it is because you're not in the heat of the moment. These police officers have really really hard jobs," Schwartz said. "Too many people are confronting the police. Police are quite frankly losing their respect in the city and that is a very dangerous path."
Romaine was arrested multiple charges, including assault on a police officer and resisting arrest. He has since made bail and is out of jail.
The NYPD's internal investigation continues.