Freddie Gray Was ‘Folded Up Like a Crab,’ Witness Says
Freddie Gray Was ‘Folded Up Like a Crab,’ Witness Says
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A child watches a protest march for Freddie Gray as it passes by April 22, 2015, in Baltimore. Gray died from spinal injuries about a week after he was arrested and transported in a police van.Patrick Semansky—AP
A Baltimore man who filmed the arrest of Freddie Gray, the Baltimore man who died from a spinal injury after being detained by police, says he witnessed officers placing their heels in Gray’s back and having him “folded up like a crab.”
Several videos have now emerged showing the arrest of the black 25-year-old, which has once again focused national attention on police use of force following a series of earlier incidents in Ferguson, New York City, Cleveland and North Charleston, and has sparked protests around Baltimore.
According to the Baltimore Sun, Kevin Moore, who lives in Gilmor Homes, a Baltimore housing complex where Gray was arrested, filmed part of the incident in which Gray can be seen screaming while two officers have him handcuffed and pinned to the sidewalk.
“They had him folded up like he was a crab or a piece of origami,” Moore told the Sun. “He was all bent up.” Moore says one officer had his knee in Gray’s neck and that Gray was telling them he couldn’t breathe and needed an asthma pump.
A police report of the incident said Gray was detained without use of force on April 12, but authorities have so far provided little detail on how Gray came to be fatally injured. He died on Sunday a week after his arrest.
The six officers involved have been suspended with pay pending an investigation by the police department, which will be released May 1. The Department of Justice has also opened an investigation.
Witness Protests in Baltimore Over the Death of Freddie Gray
Demonstrators put their fists in the air during a protest against police brutality and the death of Freddie Gray outside the Baltimore Police Western District station in the Sandtown neighborhood of Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesTen-year-old Robert Dunn uses a megaphone to address hundreds of demonstrators during a protest against police brutality and the death of Freddie Gray outside the Baltimore Police Western District station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesProtesters argue with Baltimore Police officers outside the Western District police station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesDemonstrators and police officers wrestle over a metal barricade outside the Baltimore Police Western District station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesEdward Mazyck joins hundreds of other protesters marching through Baltimore on April 21, 2015.Matt Roth—The New York Times/ReduxDemonstrators pretend to be arrested in front of the Baltimore Police Department Western District station to protest against the death in police custody of Freddie Gray in Baltimore on April 23, 2015.Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersBaltimore Police officers keep demonstrators back while standing guard outside the Western District station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Chip Somodevilla—Getty ImagesA child watches protesters march for Freddie Gray in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Patrick Semansky—APProtestors walk toward Baltimore Police Department's Western District police station during a march and vigil over the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore on April 21, 2015.Drew Angerer—Getty ImagesChildren riding bikes look on as protesters march on Laurens Street in Baltimore on April 21, 2015.Drew Angerer—Getty ImagesA marcher embraces Baltimore Police Lt. Col. Melvin T. Russell, in front of the department's Western District police station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Alex Brandon—APProtestors participate in a vigil for Freddie Gray down the street from the Baltimore Police Department's Western District police station in Baltimore on April 21, 2015.Drew Angerer—Getty ImagesProtestors participate in a vigil for Freddie Gray down the street from the Baltimore Police Department's Western District police station in Baltimore on April 21, 2015.Drew Angerer—Getty ImagesA protester holds a sign during a rally for Freddie Gray outside Baltimore Police Department Western District station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015.Sait Serkan Gurbuz—CorbisA protester wearing a Baltimore Ravens cap covers his face during a rally for Freddie Gray outside Baltimore Police Department Western District station in Baltimore on April 22, 2015. Sait Serkan Gurbuz—CorbisDemonstrators march to City Hall to protest against the death of Freddie Gray in police custody, in Baltimore on April 25, 2015. Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersA demonstrator confronts police near Camden Yards during a protest in Baltimore on April 25, 2015. Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersProtesters attack Baltimore police cars and suspected police cars during a demonstration against police brutality in downtown Baltimore on April 25, 2015.Jay Mallin—Zuma PressLaw enforcement officers detain a demonstrator on Gilmore Avenue near Baltimore Police Department Western District during a protest against the death of Freddie Gray in police custody, in Baltimore on April 25, 2015.Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersA demonstrator confronts law enforcement officers near Baltimore Police Department Western District in Baltimore on April 25, 2015.Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersLaw enforcement officers stand guard near Baltimore Police Department Western District in Baltimore on April 25, 2015.Sait Serkan Gurbuz—ReutersA protestor lays in the middle of a street during a march for Freddie Gray in Baltimore on April 25, 2015.Patrick Semansky—AP
