Taser shocker

October 25, 2010
By JOHN COLES, The Sun

TWO cops Tasered a man and punched him repeatedly in the head as dozens of horrified witnesses looked on.

The heavy-handed tactics came after they had already wrestled the man to the ground. While one officer pinned the man down with a knee on his neck, his colleague fired a Taser at the inside of the man's left thigh at point-blank range. The man yelled in agony before the other cop landed four punches in his face.

As around 30 people booed and jeered at the violent scenes, one of the officers shouted: "He's resisting arrest."

But marketing student Chris Parsons - who filmed the incident in Swansea, South Wales, on his mobile phone - said: "It was shocking and really over the top. The cops were just talking to him and then all of a sudden for no reason it just kicked off. They were being really heavy-handed and you can see from the film how they tried to Taser him once before dragging him across the floor and finally doing it. He was shouting, 'What are you doing to me?' And then the second cop hit him over and over in the head."

Chris, 21 - on a night out with pals in the city - added: "The only way they could justify what happened was if the man had been fighting them, but I didn't see any sign of that. I didn't hang around to see how it ended because they'd seen me filming and I wasn't taking any chances after what I'd just witnessed. You'd think they'd show a little more caution these days when everyone has got a phone and camera with them."

After viewing the footage, South Wales Police said: "We have had no formal complaints but we are aware of this incident and are reviewing the operational response. Due to the matter going to court, it would be inappropriate to comment further."

A 29-year-old man has been charged with criminal damage and released on bail.