World News | 3 Arkansas Officers Suspended After Video Captures Beating

Mulberry (US), Aug 22 (AP) Three Arkansas law enforcement officers have been suspended and a state police investigation launched after a video posted on social media showed a suspect being held down on the ground and beaten by police.

Arkansas State Police said on Sunday night that it would investigate the use of force by the officers earlier in the day outside a convenience store in Mulberry, about 140 miles (220 kilometres) northwest of Little Rock.

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Two Crawford County sheriff's deputies and one Mulberry police officer were suspended on Sunday, city and county authorities said.

The officers were responding to a report of a man making threats outside the convenience store, authorities said.

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State police identified the man as Randall Worcester, 27, of Goose Creek, South Carolina.

The video posted online shows one officer punching Worcester with a clenched fist, while another can be seen kneeing him, and a third is holding him down.

Worcester was taken to a hospital for treatment on Sunday then released and booked in the Van Buren County jail on multiple charges, including second-degree battery, resisting arrest and terroristic threatening, state police said.

Authorities have not released the names of the three officers who were seen on the video.

Crawford County Sheriff Jimmy Damante said that the two deputies were suspended pending an investigation.

“I hold all my employees accountable for their actions and will take appropriate measures in this matter,” Damante said.

In a statement released on Sunday evening, Mulberry Police Chief Shannon Gregory said the city 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,” Gregory said.

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said on Twitter that the “incident in Crawford County will be investigated pursuant to the video evidence and the request of the prosecuting attorney.” (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)