Camden County authorities are investigating allegations that a police officer repeatedly punched an unarmed man after he had been wrestled to the ground.
All three officers involved in the incident have been placed on administrative leave while the Camden County Prosecutor's Office conducts its investigation into the matter, county spokesperson Dan Keashen said.
The allegations stem from an incident caught on surveillance video around 8 p.m. Thursday outside a store on the 1300 block of Collings Road in Camden. The video, obtained by NBC10, shows three officers confronting 32-year-old Edward Minguela after police had been told there was a person with a gun outside the store.
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Minguela was in the area when police arrived and matched the suspect description given to police. He was also near a car that matched a vehicle description provided in the tip, NBC10 reported.
After the officers drew their weapons and confronted Minguela, one of the officers is shown on the video wrestling Minguela to the ground as he appeared to hold up his hands. The officer then appears to repeatedly punch Minguela in the back of the head as he was down on his stomach.
I did nothing wrong to them. I didn’t resist. I didn’t do nothing."
The three officers have been assigned to desk duty as the Camden County Prosecutor's Office investigates the incident. The officer accused of attacking Minguela was wearing a working body camera, according to the report.
In a statement, Keashen called the alleged incident "extremely disturbing" and said it shows conduct that "is not consistent with our policy, training and standards at the Camden County Police Department."