Editor's note: The video contains graphic content and language which may be unsuitable for some readers.
Barrie police say they have seen the video of a downtown arrest that is making the rounds on social media tonight and shows a physical interaction between an officer and a man.
The incident, which occurred on Dunlop Street East near Owen Street around 3:30 p.m., shows a Barrie police officer on top of a man who at one point tells bystanders that he's 20 years old.
Barrie police communications co-ordinator Peter Leon told BarrieToday Thursday night that the service has seen video and is reviewing it before making any further comments.
“Obviously, there was something that precipitated the incident on the video and we want to find out just what happened,” Leon said. “We are currently looking into this.”
The video obtained by BarrieToday does not show what led up to the arrest, which happened in front of Meridian Place.
However, Kelly Platt, who lives downtown, told BarrieToday she heard loud screaming coming from Dunlop Street and went to take a look.
“You hear yelling sometimes downtown and so I wasn’t overly concerned about it, but this was loud and there were people around,” said Platt. “I saw the guy get slammed to the ground and that's when I started recording. I heard his head hit the pavement.”
Platt said the incident initially started down the street when the man “blew through a red light at Five Points on his skateboard.”
Platt’s husband, who was working downtown, told her the young man received a ticket and began skateboarding again eastbound on Dunlop Street.
“That's where the cop car chased him down and swerved in front of him,” she said. “I heard him asking the officer why he was still bothering him after he already gave him a ticket.”
At one point in the video, the officer flips the man over and strikes him in the back of his head.
Another video shows the officer on top of the man with a taser to his neck. The officer asks, “Do you want this?” followed by “Put your hands behind your back right now or I’m lighting you up.”
Bystanders can be heard asking the man to stop resisting as well as commenting it was excessive force.
Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman also commented on social media about the incident Thursday night.
"I've seen the videos of the violent arrest on Dunlop Street. This will be fully investigated," he said. "I won't be ignoring this, and once we have all the details, there will be full accountability."
BarrieToday will have more on this developing story as information becomes available.
