WEBSTER, MASS. (WHDH) - A 17-year-old is recovering after he was beaten and stunned while being taken into custody in Webster Saturday night.
Webster police responded Monday to a third-party video that has been circulating on social media showing the arrest of a teenager Saturday night. Police said the video does not capture the whole encounter, nor give proper context, and subsequently released body camera video from one of their officers involved in the situation.
In a statement, police wrote, “We are aware of a third-party video circulating on social media showing the arrest of a male. During the arrest, you can see officers wrestling and punching the male, trying to take him into custody. I will admit, the video does not look pretty. However, anytime officers have to use force, it never does. It’s also important to realize that this is just a brief snippet of the incident, and the viewer has no idea the circumstances that led up to this interaction, what the officers’ perception of the situation was, and why they responded the way they did.”
That teenager, identified as 17-year-old Japhet Villanueva, said he feels his injuries tell a different story. His face was badly beaten, he is missing teeth, and came away with stun gun marks on his back.
“It’s just crazy that like, I’m almost being seen as some kind of bad person as if I was trying to beat up a cop or just something stupid like that, when in reality all I was trying to do was protect myself,” said Villanueva.
On Saturday at approximately 5:39 p.m., the South Worcester County Communication Center said it received a call for three juveniles, dressed in black, taking what appeared to be rifles out of a backpack in the area of Park Street and Myrtle Avenue. Villanueva told 7NEWS what appeared to be rifles, were BB guns.
A short time later, police received reports that three juveniles fired shots out of a car window, and they were involved in an altercation on Wall Street.
Officers arrived a short time later. Police said as they were responding, they were advised that the altercation was possibly turning physical. It was also reported that there was a possible firearm involved.
Villanueva said that scuffle was between him and his brother, and it was his brother’s windows that had been shot at.
“I only pushed him, I didn’t put my fists on him, I didn’t slap him I only pushed him,” said Villanueva. “It wasn’t like a shove, it was a light push.”
Body camera video released by Sergeant Mroczek captured one suspect trying to hold another back. One of them appeared to be agitated, and police said he was, “showing a tendency to be assaultive.” They said that suspect, identified as Villanueva, then ignored officers’ commands to get on the ground, and shouted profanities at them.
Police said due to Villanueva’s refusal to comply with orders, they were forced to try and take him to the ground.
In a statement, police said, “Officer Johnson tries unsuccessfully to escort him to the ground, but he gets back up. The male grabs onto Officer Johnson, and you can see his hands in the area of his firearm as they struggle; Sergeant Larochelle then tackles him to the ground. He is still grabbing at officers’ duty belts and their equipment, which can turn into a potentially lethal encounter.”
Police said another suspect was yelling, “‘Do not shoot him’, which would lead officers to believe that there may be a firearm present on the scene.”
Villanueva then ends up on the ground. Video captured one officer punching him while he is still on his side and not restrained. The officer also kneed him in his chest, which police said also did not stop him from resisting and fighting with officers.
Police said they used a stun gun, but it had no effect. Officers said they were telling him to lie on his stomach and put his hands behind his back.
Villanueva eventually complied, and police said they took him and another suspect into custody. Both were eventually released to their parents.
Though Villanueva realizes his behavior was not perfect, he said he does not think the situation should have escalated the way it did.
“In my eyes that was police brutality, in my opinion at least,” said Villanueva. “Their training needs to be worked on for real. There was no reason for me to be beaten to that level where I can’t even talk correctly. I have to talk with a lisp now, because if I talk the way I normally do, my teeth hit my lip, and I start crying.”
One officer sustained a broken hand. Another sustained minor injuries.
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