Three Arkansas law enforcement officers were suspended on Sunday after they were caught on camera assaulting a man by repeatedly punching him and pounding his head on the concrete.
The widely circulated video shows three officers punching and kneeing the man several times before pounding his head on the concrete floor outside a Kountry Xpress convenience store in Mulberry.
At the end of the 30-second video, an officer can be seen pointing at the person recording the video and seemingly ordering her to stop.
According to reports, the woman who filmed the video had sent it to her sister, Naomi Johnson, who shared it on Twitter.
Since then, the video has garnered over four million views, leading to public outrage over the assault.
Crawford County sheriff Jimmy Damante in a statement on Sunday evening said two county deputies and a Mulberry police officer were suspended during the course of the Arkansas state police’s investigation into the incident.
“I hold all my employees accountable for their actions and will take appropriate measures in this matter,” Mr Damante said.
Shannon Gregory, the Mulberry police chief said the officer involved in the incident is on leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
“The city of Mulberry and the Mulberry police department takes these investigations very seriously and holds all their officers accountable for their actions.
“We will take the appropriate actions at the conclusion of the investigation.”
The police had allegedly received a report indicating that a man was making threats to the convenience store employee on Sunday morning.
They claimed that when officers confronted the man, he had pushed a deputy to the ground and punched the back of his head.
The man, identified as 27-year-old Randall Worcester, was arrested and taken to a local hospital. The suspect faces charges of terroristic threatening, resisting arrest and other assault charges, police said.
Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson tweeted saying he had spoken to authorities and the local arrest incident will be “investigated pursuant to the video evidence and the request of the prosecuting attorney”.
