Seattle police officer caught kneeling on the necks of multiple George Floyd protesters
Video footage from a weekend of riots show one officer in Seattle using the same chokehold that led to George Floyd’s death on multiple protesters
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A Seattle police officer was seen kneeling on the necks of suspected looters amid protests against the death of George Floyd, who died after an officer kneeled on his neck in now-viral footage.
The police department was responding to reports of looting at a T-Mobile on Saturday night when the incident occurred.
Journalist Matt McKnight recorded the confrontation and shared it to Twitter, showing the scene as multiple suspects were arrested outside of the vandalised store.
A man wearing an orange sweatshirt could be seen being tackled to the ground by multiple officers, as one placed their knee of his neck while restraining his arms.
Multiple protesters were heard in the video shouting “get off his neck!” as the man laid on the street, his head pressed into the ground. At one point, a second officer pulls the other officer’s knee from the man’s neck to his back, while continuing to restrain him.
Several seconds before the confrontation between the officer and the man in the orange sweatshirt, the same cop appeared to be kneeling on the neck of another suspected looter while assisting with an arrest.
Demonstrations have consumed at least 30 cities across the US over the weekend to protest the police-involved killing of Mr Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed black man who was seen pleading that he could not breathe as a white Minneapolis officer kneeled on his neck.
Derek Chauvin, the officer involved in his death, has been fired and arrested on third-degree murder charges for kneeling on his neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds, according to the charging documents.
Many of the protesters participating in the demonstrations – some of which turned into chaotic scenes of looting and riots during the weekend – said they were also opposing use of fatal force against unarmed black men by police departments across the country.