Australia: Police goons exposed by honest cop

Police have been accused of using camera phones to record themselves subduing people with capsicum spray and sending each other the images as part of a bizarre arrest ritual. The claims have come to light following investigations into an incident which allegedly left a man in hospital on life-support equipment. The accused constable is said to have doused the drunk and aggressive man with capsicum spray while filming his reaction. The officer's phone has since been seized to undergo forensic tests including those that would determine if deleted or forwarded footage could be retrieved.

A senior police source said: "The claim is that a group of these blokes have been filming people after they gas them to see who struggles the most and making a competition out of it. NSW Police Minister David Campbell yesterday described the allegations as "concerning". "I am advised by police that an internal investigation has been launched which will be overseen by the Ombudsman," he said. "Until that investigation is complete it would be inappropriate for me to comment further." Mr Campbell said he expected any officer found to have acted inappropriately would be dealt with swiftly by Police Commissioner Ken Moroney or his successor.

The assault is alleged to have occurred during a late-night arrest in Sydney's west some weeks ago and to have left the apprehended man unconscious and not breathing, resulting in him being rushed to Westmead Hospital by ambulance and placed in intensive care before making an apparent full recovery. However, it is understood an investigation was launched following a formal complaint lodged by another officer at the scene of the arrest and not by the injured man. "It's about him putting everyone else present in an unacceptable position," an officer said, summarising the allegations.

"After this bloke is in the wagon, where he's no longer a threat to anyone except perhaps himself, virtually a whole can of spray is emptied into him. "He's then found unconscious and not breathing and ends up in hospital on life support. He was in a pretty bad way for a couple of days."

A police spokesman said the accused officer had been among a contingent of NSW officers trained as Operational Support Group (OSG) personnel. Schooled in anti-riot procedures, the group is expected to be among the first chosen to work alongside the force's elite Public Order and Riot Squad (PORS) at Sydney's APEC summit in September.

However, PORS boss Chief Superintendent Steve Cullen said yesterday he was unaware of any practice whereby his own officers had used their mobile phones to video arrests. "With regard to OC spray, it has only been used by PORS police on a handful of occasions, each of these in a heavily supervised environment," he said. "There have been no complaints involving a PORS officer and their use of OC spray. "PORS officers are rigorously trained and are fully versed in the professional standards required."

When approached by The Sun-Herald on Friday, the accused officer declined to comment. The affair follows the suspension of several ACT police over the alleged improper use of capsicum spray.

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