8 Cops Who Dragged Man From Truck Suspended

South Africa's Jacob Zuma: incident 'horrific' and 'unacceptable'
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 1, 2013 4:56 AM CST
S. Africa Cops Suspended After Dragging Man from Vehicle
A frame grab from video of the incident.   (YouTube)

Eight South African police officers have been suspended after being caught on video dragging a man from the back of a pickup truck, Reuters reports. The station commander is set to be removed, a commissioner says. "We would like to assure the country and the world that what is in the video is not how the South African Police Service in a democratic South Africa goes about it," she adds, noting her "extreme shock and outrage," per the AP.

Meanwhile, President Jacob Zuma weighed in on the incident, whose victim was later found dead in detention. "The visuals of the incident are horrific, disturbing, and unacceptable. No human being should be treated in that manner," he said. It was a "tragic death of a man in the hands of the police." The country has a reputation for police brutality; some 1,200 people die in custody each year, Reuters notes. (More South Africa stories.)

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