Toronto Mayor John Tory says he's not happy with a video showing two police officers threatening to confiscate a man's phone for filming an arrest, in an incident police say is now under review.
The video shows two officers threatening to take a man's phone if he does not stop filming their arrest.
"I am predictably displeased by what appears to be an intrusion to people's civil rights," Tory told CTV Toronto on Wednesday. He said people with cameras are good for everyone in these cases, because they ensure parties are held accountable for their actions.
Waseem Khan says two officers "threatened" him for recording a takedown in downtown Toronto earlier this week, during which he saw police trying to subdue a male suspect.
"They put him on the ground and I saw an officer kick him and stomp him, the gentleman, on the head," Khan told CTV Toronto on Tuesday.
In Khan's video, several officers can be seen subduing a suspect on the ground, approximately 4-5 metres away from the camera. The video does not show any kicking, but the snap and buzz of what sounds like a Taser can be heard. "He's down and they Tased him?" Khan can be heard saying.
"Move back sir if you want to be a witness, move back!" a male officer shouts at Khan.
"I'm not obstructing your arrest," he says.
A female police officer then says, "Please, just let them do what they need to."
Seconds later, a male officer asks the female officer to "Get that guy out of my face please."
The female officer and a male officer respond to the request by confronting Khan, demanding that he put away his phone.
"No, I'm a witness," he can be heard saying in the video.
"OK, well if you're a witness we're going to be seizing your cellphone," the female officer says.
"Stop recording or I'm going to seize your phone as evidence and then you're going to lose your phone," adds the male officer in the video.
"I definitely think they were intending to make me feel threatened to make me stop recording," Khan told CTV Toronto.
Toronto Police spokesperson Mark Pugash says the officers did not have the authority to make that request.
"We've told our officers before that if someone isn't interfering, isn't obstructing, then they have every right to film," Pugash told CTV Toronto on Tuesday. "And as far as I could see from this video, the person filming wasn't doing anything wrong."
The male officer in the video also warned Khan that he might contract AIDS from the suspect, who allegedly spat on a civilian and one of the officers.
"He's going to spit in your face and you're going to get AIDS," the male officer says in the video.
Khan says he doubted the officer's words. "I definitely don't think that the officer knew whether or not he had AIDS, and the officer should know, you don't get AIDS from someone spitting on you."
Other bystander video shows the actual arrest as it unfolded. A female officer can be seen confronting the suspect, who appears to struggle against her. A handful of construction workers nearby intervene, and the suspect is subdued.
"We arrested him and at the point of the arrest he launched a completely unprovoked attack on a police officer," Pugash said. "He spat at her and then knocked her to the ground with a single punch."
Pugash added that one of the construction workers who intervened was bitten by the suspect.
Pugash defended the officers' use of force in the arrest.
The Toronto Police Professional Standards unit is investigating both the arrest and the officers who told the man to stop recording.
Andrew John Henry, 42, was slated to appear in court Wednesday to face nine charges including uttering threats, assaulting police and mischief. He is due back in court Thursday.
With files from CTV Toronto
