Paramedic, officers apparently captured punching iPhone theft suspect on video
SUNSET PARK, N.Y. (WABC) -- An NYPD takedown of an alleged phone thief inside a Sunset Park bodega last month has prompted an internal investigation.
Surveillance video surfaced capturing both a paramedic and police officer choking, and delivering several blows to the face and chest of the suspect.
Just after 12:30 a.m. on Sept. 12, a paramedic noticed a man break into his vehicle near Lutheran Hospital and steal his cellphone, GPS and clothing. The paramedic began to chase him, but lost him. He eventually jumped into a cop car with two officers and used the Find My iPhone App to track it down.
Police tracked the suspect to a deli in the 5400 block of Fourth Ave in Sunset Park. They tried to arrest 21-year-old Daniel Shevchenko and had his hands behind his back. In the video, the paramedic can be seen joining in and punching suspect
An FDNY spokesperson said the EMS worker is privately employed.
Eyewitness News spoke with the stepfather of Shevchenko.
He called the incident a clear cut example of excessive force. "Just hold one guy down, beat him," Edward Vulfson said. "They punched him in the mouth."
"What you see is this EMS worker interfering in an arrest, obstructing, starts choking this man, then starts punching him, and you would expect the police officers to push this guy aside," said Dennis Flores, a community activist.
Flores said altercations like this are happening all too often and widening the divide between police and the communities they serve. He and others want to see real change within the department, not rhetoric.
"Everybody is entitled to due process, if he did commit the crime and he didn't resist, he's being placed under arrest, all of that wasn't necessary," Flores said.
Shevchenko is being charged with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, unauthorized use of a vehicle and resisting arrest.
There's no word yet on any disciplinary action being taken with any of the officers or the paramedic involved in this incident. The new York City Police Department's Internal Affairs is investigating.
