Investigation into the arrest of a black man should be completed by the weekend, says Leite

The governor of Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite, estimates that the inquiry opened by the Internal Affairs of the Military Brigade to investigate the conduct of military police officers against a black man will be completed by the end of this week.

A CNN , the governor stated that, if irregularities are confirmed, the military could face administrative punishment. Furthermore, the case can be referred to the Military Court for evaluation in the criminal sphere.

“The inquiry is in the hearing procedures of those involved and witnesses. It should be completed by the end of the week. Once the investigation is concluded, the Brigade Internal Affairs Department will apply any administrative punishment and, if there is evidence of a crime, it will urgently send a copy to the Military Court,” stated the governor.

A CNN found that witnesses testified that, during the arrest of the black man, the police were informed that he was the victim of another man who tried to stab him.

The police action, carried out on Saturday morning, was recorded by people who witnessed the attack suffered by the boy.

In the images it is possible to see a black man giving explanations to one of the police officers from the Military Brigade who responded to the incident.

At the same time, another police officer talks to the alleged attacker, a shirtless white man. The person filming the video says that the man “stabbed him in the neck”, and that “then he tried again”.

At one point, the victim says he works in the region, but is interrupted by the white man, who says he “doesn’t work at all”.

When trying to respond, the black man is grabbed by the shirt by a police officer and, moments later, pressed against a wall.

Despite the presence of three other agents, the alleged attacker leaves the scene while the police immobilize the injured man and handcuff him, amid protests from people who witnessed the action.

A witness heard by the CNN said that the police treated the black man in a truculent manner and treated the alleged attacker as “cordial and polite”.

“The police arrived about 10 minutes later and approached the victim. He ended up taking her by force, in the van in the back,” he reported. “The attacker was not disturbed, he went upstairs, left the knife at home, changed his clothes.”