Video of another brutal Victoria Police arrest captured on camera
The use of force by Victoria Police officers is again in question, after footage emerged of another brutal arrest.
Video surfaced on Tuesday night showing a 23-year-old Sudanese-born Melbourne man being punched and kicked in the head nine times by two police officers, while being detained, Fairfax Media reports.
The young man, who was reportedly having a psychotic episode, had been trying to rob the Preston chemist when a civilian restrained him at the back of the store before police took over, in February 2016.
He was in a pharmacy, armed with a pair of scissors after he attacked several bystanders, according to Fairfax Media.
Police are called in and follow the young man to a rear room of the pharmacy where he has already been restrained by several people without any violence.
The footage shows an officer kneeling on the young man's back before reigning down on him a powerful barrage of punches to the back of the head while trying to handcuff the man.
Once the young man is handcuffed, the officer stands up and kicks him to the side of the head before punching him again and whacking the suspect with what appears to be a baton. Four officers appear in the vision.
Shocking vision of 'police brutality on a disability pensioner'
'His skin was peeling off': Father left with severe burns after falling into garage fire
Police operation underway after man scales Sydney Harbour Bridge
The force's Professional Standards Command reviewed the incident and no sanctions were handed down.
The young man was later sentenced for his crimes, however the footage raises serious questions for Victoria Police about their use of force.
The latest video emerged a day after Victoria's anti-corruption commission announced a move to investigate a group of police officers caught on camera pinning down and beating a Melbourne disability pensioner in September, before spraying him with capsicum spray at his home in Preston - which was caught on CCTV.
Assistant Commissioner Luke Cornelius said on Tuesday he was very concerned by the security footage of the incident at the pensioner's home, obtained by Fairfax Media.
It was not police practice to stand down officers when a complaint was made, he said.
Any decision regarding the officers would follow the outcome of the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission's investigation.
Premier Daniel Andrews said on Tuesday he had not watched the footage.
"Victoria Police, as the nation's best police force, conduct themselves with professionalism and are in my experience proportionate to the risks that they face," he said.
Last week's IBAC report found Victoria Police failed to adequately manage conflicts of interests, consider human rights and examine relevant evidence in serious incidents when people were hurt or killed.
