This post contains graphic content.
A video surfaced showing a California police officer holding a K-9 down on the ground and punching it in the face.
The incident was recorded by Roberto Palomino, who was on his way to work in Vacaville on Monday when he witnessed the incident, according to Fox 40.
Palomino said it caught his attention because he could hear the dog crying.
“As I looked over, I see an officer punching over and over a dog,” he told Fox 40, adding that it was “disturbing” to witness.
The video is only a few seconds long and shows the Vacaville Police Department officer holding down the dog, who is still, and landing a punch on its face.
Palomino only recorded one punch, but before he pulled out his phone, he says the officer punched the dog at least 10 times.
“Unfortunately, I only (recorded) the one punch,” he added. “But the reason I pulled my phone is because of the hard beating the dog was taking from the officer.”
The video, which was reuploaded to the “Bad_Cop_No_Donut” subreddit, does not have any audio.
When speaking with Fox 40, VPD Captain Matt Lydon defended the officer’s actions, claiming the video doesn’t provide the full context.
He said the incident occurred during a training exercise, in which the K-9 was learning how to find narcotics. When the officer took away a toy the dog was rewarded with, the dog allegedly became violent.
The K-9 then “lunged at the officer and attempted to bite the officer,” Lydon added.
He claimed that for public safety reasons, it’s important for officers to establish dominance over their dogs in response to such behavior.
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H/T Fox 40