A policeman punched a handcuffed 19-year-old in the face after his colleague turned off his body camera, Queensland’s corruption watchdog has been told.
Officers were questioning the teenager on a bench at a Brisbane train station after a fight between him and a friend and another group.
The pair were on their way home from an Iron Maiden concert on May 4 last year when the fight broke out, and he was bloodied when police interviewed him.
Body camera footage showed a female officer calmly questioning the teen, who admitted to being ‘really pissed hey’, before the sergeant approached.
He immediately confronted the handcuffed man saying ‘what are you looking at me for? What’s your problem?’ in the footage obtained by the Courier Mail.
The 19-year-old replied: ‘Why are you looking at me?’
‘Because you’re a f***ing idiot, that’s why I’m looking at you,’ the sergeant responded, prompting the teen to swear back – before he was told to ‘show some respect’ by the female officer.
Suddenly the footage stopped, switching to a scene outside 20 minutes later with the teen bent over the bonnet of a police car as they waited for an ambulance.
A police senior sergeant (R) punched a handcuffed 19-year-old (L) in the face after his colleague turned off his body camera during this confrontation
The 19-year-old was agitated and accused the sergeant of hitting him, swearing to ‘file a report on you dogs’.
The punch was caught on Queensland Rail CCTV at Boondall station but did not have the video quality of a police camera or include sound.
Lawyer Alastair Macadam lodged a complain with the Crime and Corruption Commission, which is now investigating the incident.
Two constables present claimed the teenager threatened to bite the senior sergeant in the throat then opened and clenched his jaw several times.
He then turned his face towards the sergeant’s hand, prompting him to punch him in the left side of his face ‘to discontinue his actions’, the officers claimed.
Suddenly the footage stopped, switching to a scene outside 20 minutes later with the teen bent over the bonnet of a police car, accusing the sergeant of hitting him
The male officer who was wearing the body camera claimed to have thought they had stopped recording and so pressed the record button to turn it on again – but actually switched it off.
When police arrived the teen was pinned to the ground by his opponents after CCTV showed after he was knocked down in the fight he jumped on to the tracks to grab rocks to use against them.
He was eventually fined $117 for offensive language and the rest of the combatants were let go without charge.
Queensland Police declined to comment as the matter was with the CCC.