Weatherford police release dash and body cam after cellphone video shows man shot with pepper gun
By: 0:00 - Intro
1:50 - Cellphone video
2:05 - Dash cam
3:19 - Body cam
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Following a video that went viral on social media earlier this week, the Weatherford Police Department released a statement on the incident as well as camera footage.
The initial video, taken the morning of Sept. 27, showed a man along Interstate 20 engaged with several officers who eventually deployed what turned out to be a pepper gun.
WPD Sgt. Tiffany Vanzant said an officer was dispatched to the area of First Financial Bank, where an employee reported a man behaving strangely who had left behind the broken blade of a knife.
The man was located on foot in front of Olive Garden, and began running west toward the interstate service road, where he sat down, intentionally trying to be struck by passing vehicles, Vanzant said. The officer also observed the man reach into his pocket and pull out a knife.
The man turned and ran into the eastbound lanes of the interstate, eventually laying down in the roadway, according to WPD. As officers approached, the man turned and the knife was observed in his hand.
One of the officers put away his handgun and retrieved the pepper gun, delivering one shot to the man as he threw the knife over his shoulder, Vanzant said. After officers' verbal commands did not illicit a response, a second shot from the pepper gun was delivered, and the man became more complaint and was eventually handcuffed and removed from the roadway.