Syracuse, N.Y. — Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile Saturday issued a statement defending officers seen punching and arresting a man in a video shared to social media.
In a video posted to Facebook Saturday afternoon a man’s face was left bloody after police arrested him on Wolf Street in Syracuse. The video was quickly shared and had over 100,000 views on Saturday night.
The man arrested, Kyle Williams, 33, was wanted on multiple felony warrants and during the arrests was found with two knives and a handgun, Syracuse Police Chief Joe Cecile said in a news release a few hours after the video circulated.
Police were on Wolf Street at about 3:15 p.m. handling a follow-up for a stolen vehicle, Cecile said. While there, they were alerted to a man, Williams, with active felony warrants for prior domestic violence incidents.
When officers encountered Williams, they told him he had warrants and was under arrest, Cecile said.
When they approached Williams, they assumed he was armed due to being listed in the county data system as so, as well as being known to resist, Cecile said.
As officers attempted to arrest Williams, the video shows he would not put his hands behind his back.
At one point Williams reached for his waistband where he had two knives visible, he said.
The video shows officers on top of Williams, pushing his head onto the ground as they ask him to put his hands behind his back.
He is punched in the face by an officer as a bystander asks why they are hitting him. Officers replied and said he is resisting and has a knife.
One officer attempted to bring Williams’s hands behind his back, but when unable to the officer punches him in the face again, the video shows. Throughout the struggle, Williams repeats he doesn’t have any warrants.
When officers are finally able to restrain Williams, he is lifted up and his face is bloody.
Cecile said a loaded .38 caliber handgun fell from Williams. A straight razor was also found.
Williams was found to have a loaded Byco Arms .38 cal. Handgun, one 11-inch knife, one 4-inch knife, a straight razor, and .22 ounces of fentanyl, according to Cecile.
He was charged with criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm, criminal possession of a controlled substance and resisting arrest.
These charges were also combined with his outstanding warrants for assault, menacing and harassment.
The charges come from three separate domestic disputes that happened within the last year. One of which Williams is accused of physically assaulting a woman and putting a gun to her head, according to Cecile.
Williams was taken from Wolf Street to Upstate University Hospital, said Sgt.Thomas Blake, a spokesperson for the Syracuse police. He is being evaluated for facial injuries and will be booked afterward, he said.
The arrest of Williams was a job well done, Cecile said in the news release.