SAN ANTONIO — Less than a hundred yards away from a deadly accident on the south side of San Antonio, police wrestled a man to the ground after a fender-bender in a gas station parking lot.
KENS 5 was there when it happened. We caught it on video, and witnesses say they arrested the wrong man.
Moments were tense at the parking lot in the 10000 block of Roosevelt Avenue as a crowd witnessed a scuffle between the man and several police officers.
“The first thing that went through my mind was, 'If I was to call the cops, what would they do to me as a Black female?'" said Alexiah Williams, a witness to the events. "Because as a Hispanic male and he was innocent, they beat that man. They kneeled on him.”
KENS 5 Reporter Sue Calberg was also a witness. She saw a man in a black car, apparently upset because of the road closure, driving erratically through the parking lot and causing a minor crash. Police were then called.
Several officers responded. That's when a man in a truck claimed his car was involved in the fender-bender.
Calberg says she saw the wreck, and that was not the case. The man in the truck was not involved, but police dispute that. Investigating officers got the man out of the truck, and that's when they tried to arrest him. He appeared to resist.
Several witnesses yelled at the officers telling them they had the wrong guy.
“You're causing violence to people? We call the police over an accident," said Emmanuel Ibeawchi, another witness. "If we didn't call you guys, this wouldn't have happened.”
"They let the bad people go, and beat up the innocent, and I just feel like that's just wrong," Williams added. "That shouldn't happen."
We are working to find out the name of the man who was arrested and the charges filed against him. Police say the incident remains under investigation.
KENS 5 reached out to the San Antonio Police Department again late Friday afternoon for further comment. We are waiting for a response.