‘Black Kids Matter’ Video Of NYPD Allegedly Punching 12-Year-Old Boy Goes Viral

NYPD officers allegedly punched a 12-year-old black boy on a busy street in Manhattan. Video footage of the exchange between the New York City police officers and the youth was captured by a crowd of onlookers.

The 12-year-old black boy was arrested on the Lower East Side of Manhattan around 4 p.m. on Thursday. According to NYPD reports, the young man was handcuffed on suspicion of assaulting another individual with a cane. According to witnesses and details in the video, the 12-year-old African-American boy was leaning against a police cruiser and surrounded by officers when another man ran towards the boy “at full-speed” and punched him four times in the side.

New York Police Department’s Internal Affairs Bureau is now investing the allegations that police officers punched the 12-year-old boy during the arrest. The man who punched the young man was allegedly welcomed to join the handcuffing process by NYPD officers, leading the crowd of witnesses to believe he was a plainclothes officer.

Actress Sarah Doneghy captured the NYPD 12-year-old black boy arrest on her cell phone, and later posted the “Black Kids Matter”footage to YouTube.

“This happened today on my way to the post office. The kids were 12. They had supposedly pushed one of their classmates down,” Sarah Doneghy said beneath the NYPD video, which quickly went viral. “However, when the victim was asked, he said those weren’t the guys. They were still taken away. 12. Years. Old.”

During an interview with the Daily Mail, an NYPD representative said, “The incident is under review and the allegations have been referred to our Internal Affairs Bureau. Additionally, this individual was arrested with two others for assaulting another identified person with a cane.”

“I can’t believe he just did that after everything that’s happened,” one Black Kids Matter NYPD incident witness is heard saying on the now viral video.” Hey, Hey, Hey! Stop it, get off of him,” another witness to the New York City police officers allegedly punching a 12-year-old black boy is heard shouting on the “Black Kids Matter” video.

What do you think about claims that a plainclothes NYPD police officer punched a 12-year-old black boy four times in the side after he was handcuffed? Will more Ferguson, Tamir Rice, and Eric Garner-style protests emerge?

[Image via: pisaphotography / Shutterstock.com]