The FBI is working with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to investigate the death of a black man who was in police custody. A video captured the man, who has not been identified, on the ground pleading with an officer who had his knee on the man's neck.
Authorities were called to investigate a suspected forgery at a business in Minneapolis and began to question the man, who matched the identity of the suspect. They ordered him to get out of his car, and the officers tried to take him into custody. He began to resist, and one of the officers pinned him on the ground.
The officer tells the man to get into the squad car, but he is unable to move because the officer had him pinned down on the ground. Bystanders ask the officer to remove his knee from the man's neck, but the officers ignore their pleas, even after somebody pointed out the man was bleeding.
Later in the video, it appears the man is no longer conscious as witnesses noticed he wasn't moving. The officers called an ambulance, and the man was taken to the hospital where he pronounced dead.
"Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and realized that the suspect was suffering a medical distress," a Minneapolis police spokesman said in a news briefing. "Officers called for an ambulance. He was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center, where he died a short time later."
Officer Garrett Parten, a police spokesman said that the four officers involved in the incident have been"separated from employment," according to CNN.
A protest is planned for Tuesday (May 26) night, and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey asked anybody who shows up to remain peaceful and practice social distancing.
"If you're sad, I get it, if you're angry, that makes complete sense, if you feel the need to protest, of course, we want to make sure people are able to express themselves," Frey said. "There is another danger out there right now, which is COVID-19."
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