Georgia – IT’S BEEN JUST OVER A YEAR SINCE HECTOR ARREOLA DIED AFTER AN ENCOUNTER WITH POLICE IN THIS NORTH COLUMBUS NEIGHBORHOOD,
HIS FAMILY SAYS GRAPHIC VIDEO FOOTAGE CAPTURING THE PRE-DAWN ARREST PROVES HIS DEATH COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED
Hector Arreola called police twice last January fearing for his mother’s safety .
Twice officers responded and it was clear from the get go, Hector was having a mental break.
“What’s his problem ?”
Responding Officer’s Michael Aquilar and Brian Dudley tried to assure him the coast was clear but Hector , under the influence and suffering from paranoia wasn’t having it and proceeded to the neighbors house asking them to call 911.
“Hey listen, you’re in somebody else’s yard at 4:30 in the morning.”
Officer Aquilar calls for an ambulance but doesn’t wait for it to arrive.
And The situation escalates when officers grab Hector without warning to arrest him for disorderly conduct.
“Stop. Stop. Stop. Mom they’re going to kill me.”
For six agonizing minutes Hector Arreola begs for his life.
“Help Me I can’t breath” “He’s fine he can breath”
The video captures the nearly 250 pound officer on top of Arreola after he’s handcuffed.
“No use of Force (Inaudible)…”
Hector is now silent. The officer demands that he sit up.
“Sit up man c’mon“
The images show Hector is unresponsive and appears lifeless as he is taken away by paramedics.
and it captures Officer’s Dudley’s explanation of what just occurred.
“We just got into a fight with him. He’s got blood in his nose where he smashed his face into the ground.”
By the time Arreola is loaded into an ambulance it’s too late.
Two blocks away he goes into Cardiac Arrest and never regained consciousness.
His Dad , Retired SGT MAJ Arreola has one question for police. Why?
“What was the threat? Why did they decide to go physical?”
City Attorney Clifton Fay says the Officers showed exceptional restraint and the incident is a sad commentary on Addiction not police brutality.
“The two officers did the best they could and offered to have the medical trained technicians come evaluate Mr. Arreola. Unfortunately he was under the influence of a schedule 2 substance and it just wasn’t possible to reason with him.”
“Why would you ask somebody after you tried to apprehend him, whether he wants an ambulance. I mean that’s absurd. Those are the judgment calls and decision making that we expect our police officers to be better trained at and we’re gonna fight this till it’s resolved. We’re going to fight just as hard as Hector fought that night to stay alive.”
Source: http://www.wltz.com/2018/02/05/exclusive-body-cam-video-encounter-police-turns-deadly/