LAPD Officer Who Punched Cuffed Carjacking Suspect Suspended

LOS ANGELES, CA — Citing widely circulated video of a Los Angeles police officer punching a restrained carjacking suspect in the face, LAPD Chief Michel Moore announced the suspension of the unnamed officer this week.

The suspect was one of two people arrested Saturday in connection with a carjacking in the Mission area of the San Fernando Valley that ended with a crash into a wall in the city of San Fernando. The man was handcuffed to a gurney and being loaded into an ambulance by Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics when the officer punched him in the head. Witnesses defended the officers, telling CBS2, the suspect had been spitting on police and firefighters while calling them names.

In the video, which was viewed a million times on Twitter by Tuesday morning, the handcuffed suspect can be heard calling officers a profane name, and one officer charges several steps toward him to deliver the punch while other officers look on. A firefighter pushes the officer away, and a voice can be heard warning, "Don't do that s--- again, any officer."

Another officer walks the one who threw the punch back away from the suspect.

Video of the incident was taken by a news videographer at the scene.

"The images of the video are deeply disturbing and while we must wait for the investigation to be completed, the department will act swiftly in any instance of excessive or unnecessary force," LAPD Chief Michel Moore said.

The officer was sent home and is still being paid pending the outcome of the investigation. He has also had his police powers suspended. It was not immediately clear if the officers or firefighters who witnessed the incident reported it.

After the alleged assault, officers can be heard asking for a spit mask to prevent the suspect from spitting again, CBS2 reported.

“You’re going to spit on somebody’s face, when there’s COVID? You just don’t do something like that,” witness identified only as Nikki told CBS2. “Next thing you know, you just see him spit on the officer, and so when he spit on the officer one second…and police ended up hitting him.”

City News Service contributed to this report.