Video After The Jump
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The FBI has been called to investigate after a man died Monday night in south Minneapolis after an encounter with police.
In a statement early Tuesday, police described what happened as a medical incident. However, a video posted on social media shows an officer kneeing a man’s neck to the ground for several minutes. Before he goes unconscious, the man, who is black, repeatedly tells officers he can’t breathe.
At a press conference Tuesday morning, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey alluded to the graphic footage, saying: “I believe what I saw, and what I saw was wrong at every level.”
The mayor added: “Being black in America should not be a death sentence.”
According to police, officers responded shortly after 8 p.m. Monday to the 3700 block of Chicago Avenue South, where a man was reportedly trying to use forged documents at Cup Foods.
At the scene, police found the man, who appeared to be in his 40s and intoxicated, in a blue car. Officers told him to get out. Their body cameras were running.
“After he got out, he physically resisted officers,” police spokesman John Elder told reporters early Tuesday. “Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and officers noticed that the man was going into medical distress.”
An ambulance brought the man to Hennepin County Medical Center, where he died shortly after, police say. His name has not been released.
Minneapolis Police kill a black man on 38th and Chicago.
— Keaon Dousti (@KeaonDousti) May 26, 2020
He is screaming, “I can’t breathe” as police drive their knee on his throat for over three minutes. pic.twitter.com/1hhBLAqy8K
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