A police dog was allegedly set on a teenager suspected of affray during an arrest as the boy was left lying on the ground with his underwear showing.
What Happened?
Officers were deployed to Hampton Street in Birmingham on Tuesday following reports of a 17-person brawl, with a dog unit used to bring the situation under control and contain those suspected to be involved.
One arrest was captured by a member of the public as a dog and its handler were seen battling with a man as he lies on the ground, the crime-fighting canine clamping its jaws onto his jeans.
In a 40-second video captured by an onlooker, the man can be seen speaking to the officer with his hands raised, as the trained animal tugs at the legs of his trousers, pulling them down to his knees.
The woman who captured the video says she was worried that the suspect might have come to harm – but police, having reviewed their own footage of the arrest, say the dog performed its duties as it had been trained to.
In Turn of Events …
The author of the video, who declined to be named, said: ‘The policeman just set the dog on this guy when there was no need for him to. It seemed to go on for ages.
‘The dog pulled the man’s trousers down to expose him, and its teeth could have slipped away to take the man’s private parts.
‘If the dog had its teeth in his legs or private parts it would have ripped him apart.’
She Was Worried For The Suspect
The man on the ground was ‘absolutely terrified’ and ‘begging’ for the police officer to stop the dog, she added.
She added: ‘The guy was shouting, saying ‘ok ok ok’ – and it wasn’t ok.
‘There was no need for it. He’s a young boy. That could have been anybody’s son.’
The witness said that it made her feel ‘absolutely sick’ and that she couldn’t get it out of her mind.
‘I just keep seeing it,’ she said. ‘It makes me feel disgusting.
‘It makes me feel absolutely sick – there is no need for it. I’m not sure what the guy’s done but he doesn’t deserve it.
‘If any kids had been walking past they’d have been scarred for life.’
However, West Midlands Police said it was satisfied the dog was ‘deployed appropriately’ and that the man incurred only a ‘minor injury to his left thumb’ during the arrest.
It did not specify whether the dog was responsible for the unspecified abrasion.
