Ⓐnarcho Queer

4 Police Officers Beat Teen Suspect After He Surrenders

A teenaged robbery suspect has filed a civil suit against Trois-Rivieres police after he was beaten during an arrest.

The arrest was captured on surveillance video from the nearby CEGEP de Trois-Rivieres, it shows a quartet of police officers running up to a man lying face first in the snow, surrendering. The officers then begin kicking and punching the man repeatedly for 30 seconds.

Alexis Vadeboncoeur, 19, stated in court Thursday that he was seriously injured from repeated kicks to his testicles and that a female officer grabbed his scrotum and squeezed.

His lawyer, Rene Duval, said that despite repeated requests for medical attention, Vadeboncoeur has yet to see a doctor.

“When he was brought to the police station he requested medical assistance, and no medical assistance was provided to him,” said Duval.

“He’s telling me that since he’s been in detention he’s asked many times—in writing because that’s the way it should be done—and as of now he hasn’t received any medical assistance.”

The incident began when Vadeboncoeur allegedly robbed a Jean-Coutu pharmacy with a non-lethal pellet gun.

The video shows a hooded man running into the deserted CEGEP parking lot while pursued by police. The man then drops some items into the snow and lies face down in the snow, with his arms spread wide.

An officer then runs up and immediately begins kicking the man in the side, and several other officers join in.

The Surete du Quebec has launched an investigation into the arrest, and the four officers seen on the video have had their guns taken away and been suspended with pay.

The suspensions came about 10 days after the arrest, when discrepancies emerged between the arrest report filed by officers and other information sent from a third party.

Duval, has said his client will sue the Trois-Rivieres police officers in civil court.

Source: anarcho-queer