The Orlando Police Department released helicopter video that shows the arrest of suspected cop killer Markeith Loyd, who was taken into custody earlier this week.
During a shocking court appearance early Thursday morning, Loyd accused the police department of beating him as he tried to surrender. The department has previously claimed Loyd was injured as he resisted arrest.
The video appears to come from the police helicopter’s FLIR camera that uses a form of night vision technology to aid officers as they surrounded the abandoned house.
At about 7:28 into the full video (we’ve clipped it above), a figure appears to begin crawling out of the front door of the abandoned home and across the yard towards awaiting officers.
As Loyd appears to reach the street, the video shows several officers rush the man and it looks like at least two officers kicked at his head. However, the camera quickly pans away and does not resume another tight shot as officers continue the arrest.
According to local reports, Loyd is alleging that he suffered several broken bones in his face and may lose sight in his left eye as a result of injuries sustained during the arrest. Orlando Police Chief John Mina told reporters on Thursday afternoon at a press conference that Loyd did suffer a fractured bone near his left eye socket, but he still believed officers showed “incredible restraint” during the arrest.
Chief Mina also reminded the media that Loyd is accused of killing his pregnant girlfriend and a female cop, in addition to other alleged crimes, that they say took place over the past several weeks. He described how surveillance video taken by a business at the time of the alleged cop killing shows Loyd return to shoot the cop once more, before fleeing in a vehicle.
“Don’t automatically assume they panned away because there was a use of force going on,” Chief Mina said, according to a report in the Orlando Sentinel newspaper. “Let’s not rush to judgment, let’s let the use of force investigation play out.”
Mina further suggested the cameraman changed the view because he was responsible for maintaining overwatch on the entire house.
[image via screengrab]
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