The Anaheim Police Department said Sunday that it will launch an internal, use-of-force investigation after an officer was seen in a cellphone video, appearing to strike a suspect with his firearm.
The video that has circulated on social media shows a suspect in dark clothing appearing to try evading an arrest in Lynwood while an officer with the Anaheim police vest chases him.
When the suspect finally puts his hands up, the video shows, the officer appears to pistol-whip the suspect in the head as another officer runs over to tackle him. The footage does not show what happened prior to the arrest.
The suspect, who says he’s 16 years old in the video, appears to have his face covered with blood.
Anaheim police told NBC Los Angeles Sunday that the incident had happened on Friday, acknowledging use of force was indeed used. The internal investigation will determine whether the officer’s conduct was out of policy, the police department said.
The teenager who was taken into custody in Lynwood was the ninth suspect in the smash-and-grab burglary of an Anaheim Hills jewelry store that ended in multiple car crashes from Monday, Jan. 23, the department explained.
When undercover officers tried to detain the outstanding suspect at a traffic stop in Lynwood, he abandoned his car and ran into a home. The suspect, Anaheim police said, continued to run away from police and tried to hijack two cars. The video was shot during his second attempt to steal a getaway car, according to Anaheim officials.
The suspect, who was later identified as a 17-year-old, also had an outstanding warrant from a separate case in LA County.
Officers found a weapon, ski mask and an electronic device that is used to steal vehicles inside the teen’s car, police said.
Unlike what some social media users claimed, the arrest did not involve any federal or immigration agents, according to the Anaheim Police Department.
The smash-and-grab robbery from Jan. 23 happened at a store on Santa Ana Canyon Road when a group of suspects drove a black Nissan Rogue directly into the front of the shop. Then, several people came out of the car, smashed display cases and stole jewelry, along with a firearm that was in plain view inside the store, police said.
After abandoning the Nissan Rogue at the scene, a possible stolen vehicle, the group took off in two separate vehicles.
When one of the cars reached Lemon Street at Orangethorpe Avenue in Fullerton, it crashed into multiple other cars in the intersection and injured innocent bystanders, police said. The driver was quickly apprehended, and four other suspects were later arrested.
The second getaway vehicle also crashed into other cars on Euclid Street near Melvern Avenue in Fullerton. Three people were taken into custody from the car.
The group, made up of seven men and two teens, traveled from LA County to commit the crime in Orange County, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said. The damage and stolen jewelry are estimated to be worth approximately $800,000.
The adult suspects are currently facing maximum sentences between 13 years and four months to life in prison, the DA’s office said.