John Doyle and Robert Woolever, two police officers from New Mexico have been fired after being filmed brutally beating a suspect then doing a celebratory chest bump.
The video shows the cops holding suspect Nicholas Blume down, punching him and kicking him in the head more than a dozen times.
As Nicholas Blume lies motionless on the concrete the officers move away – and bump each other in the sick celebration.
The suspect had only been stopped for a traffic violation at the time in Albuquerque, New Mexico, when he was beaten up.
Cops John Doyle and Robert Woolever have now been fired from New Mexico’s police force, which has recently been criticized over its high number of police shootings.
A special prosecutor is also reviewing the February 13 incident and will decide if the two will face criminal charges.
Albuquerque’s mayor Richard Berry said he “expects some answers” after he saw the footage.
The video was taken in the parking garage in the Barcelona Hotel in Albuquerque and shows Blume lying on the floor being punched in the head by Woolever, who is straddling his body.
Officer John Doyle then appears and kicks Nicholas Blume repeatedly in the head as he lies pinned down on the floor, unable to defend himself.
At the end of the tape on the right hand side the two officers can be seen doing the chest bump.
Pictures taken when Nicholas Blume was booked in show his head and face was left bloodied and bruised by the beating.
In an apparent attempt to cover his tracks, cop John Doyle later wrote in his notebook that he was afraid Nicholas Blume had a gun on him and needed to be restrained.
The footage was only released after a Freedom of Information request by the Albuquerque Journal – but the first version did not include the chest bump.
Instead it finished after the kicking and did not show the end, where the cops congratulate each other.
The release comes amid recent calls for a Justice Department probe of the Albuquerque police department, which has faced criticism for 20 officer-involved shootings and other questionable behaviour among officers.
Nicholas Blume was indicted in state District Court on charges of auto theft, receiving a stolen firearm, being a felon in possession of a firearm and resisting arrest.
The suspect is facing additional charges in state and federal court that stem from other incidents.
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