Buffalo City Hall file photo – Jacek_Sopotnicki/iStockBy AARON KATERSKY, MATT FOSTER and CHRISTINA CARREGA, ABC News
(BUFFALO, N.Y.) — The two Buffalo, New York, police officers seen on video shoving a 75-year-old male protester to the ground and leaving him bleeding on the pavement have been suspended, officials announced Friday.
During protests in Niagara Square on Thursday, the unidentified man was seen on camera walking toward several Buffalo police officers, who later push him.
The man fell flat on his back and bumped the back of his head on the concrete, video shows. A trail of blood can be seen seeping from the head of the motionless man as several officers walked by him.
Police Commissioner Byron C. Lockwood ordered an immediate suspension of the officers and opened an investigation. The Erie County District Attorney’s Office said on Friday it is also investigating the incident.
The spokesperson for the city and police department, Mike DeGeorge, initially said in a statement that the man “tripped and fell.”
“Once the department became aware of additional video from the scene, they immediately opened an investigation,” DeGeorge told ABC News on Thursday.
The man is in stable condition at Erie County Medical Center (ECMC).
“The victim was taken to ECMC to be treated for a head injury. He was unable to provide a statement to investigators last night. We will provide an update as the investigation progresses,” prosecutors said in a statement.
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