Detectives are investigating an incident involving a 30-year-old Broomall man who local news outlets claim was beaten and tazed by two Haverford Township police officers – and Your Content is first to reveal what really erupted between the man and two officers.
The viral video only shows the aftermath of the incident, where an eye-witness told Philly Mag he has no idea what happened … but he knows the Broomall man got tazed and slapped with a baton.
âI was on the phone with my girlfriend, and I seen this guy walking and two officers approach him,â Barkowsky, a 33-year-old cook at a nearby restaurant told Philly Mag in an explosive interview. âI really didnât know what was going on. But I saw them tase him. And as soon as that happened, I started recording. And I crossed through traffic to get a better look.â
Barkowsky was walking home when he noticed the tussle going down in the Kohlâs parking lot across the street.
From there, he hung up on his girlfriend and filmed the now-viral video.
Haverford Township police chief John Viola told the local magazine that the video only shows the tail-end of the situation, noting there’s much more to the story.
âWe have the full body cams video of everything that happened,â Viola told Philly Mag, adding that he cannot release those videos at this time while the Delaware County District Attorneyâs office investigates the incident.
Police found Christopher Ricciuti passed out on a nearby bench.
âWhen we first found him, he was sleeping in the parking lot and not sure where he was,â Viola told the magazine.
When Ricciuti awoke, he was ‘publicly intoxicated.’ Officers asked if the 30-year-old wanted a ride back to his Broomall home but he wasn’t having it.
âThis person wasnât walking. He was running away with one handcuff on.â
âOriginally, they were trying to give him a ride home. But he was incoherent. They decided to arrest him for public drunkenness.”
That’s when things went south, according to Chief Viola, who told Philly Mag the tough Marple man continued fleeing despite being tased … twice.
“They got one handcuff on him, and then he ran away. He had been tased twice during the course of this run, but it was having no effect. And then they finally tackled him in the driveway.”
âPeople are saying, âOh my God! They are beating this guy!’â Viola notes. âBut in the greater context, this is just the end result of trying to get him under control. All that aside, we reviewed it and turned it over to the DAâs office.â
âWe had the medics there,â Viola says. âBut he did not want to go to the hospital.â
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