Instead, the witness told FBI investigators that “at no point” did she see 27-year-old Randall Worcester attack officers, her sister Naomi Johnson told the Daily Mail. The witness said she saw the cops and Worcester talking “calmly” as he sat on the sidewalk — unaware of what was about to happen, Johnson explained. He said the officers then burst in, pinning Worcester to the ground and crying into his head and face. Johnson said that’s when her sister started recording. “At no point did she see him attack an officer,” Johnson said. “My sister said that in her statement to the FBI, which she gave on Monday.” Police, meanwhile, allege the beating was preceded by Worcester pushing a deputy to the ground and punching him in the head. A lawyer for the officers, Russell Wood, has repeated the same story, saying Worcester “viciously attacked” the officers. The incident happened Sunday morning outside a convenience store in Mulberry, Arkansas, near the Oklahoma border. Wood says they were trying to arrest Worcester after he “threatened to cut off a woman’s face.” Tens of millions have since seen the disturbing video on social media—even with messages posted at the beginning of the video warning of its graphic nature. The video, which begins with Worcester already pinned, shows a pair of sheriff’s deputies and a Mulberry police officer attacking the 27-year-old, repeatedly hitting him in the head while he is unable to defend himself. “Shit, man,” a bystander can be heard saying. “This is bad.” A second officer is then seen striking Worcester repeatedly with his knee. Seconds later, an officer lifts Worcester’s head off the ground by his hair and slams it into the concrete. Bystanders can be heard screaming at the officers to stop, prompting them to shout: “Back to hell!” The three officers involved are Zack King and Levi Garrett White of the Crawford County Sheriff’s Office and Thell Riddle of the Mulberry Police Department. “I hold all of my officers accountable for their actions and will take appropriate action in this matter,” Sheriff Jimmy Damante said in a Facebook post. All three officers have been suspended with pay as the Arkansas State Police investigate the incident. Wood, who represents White and King, claims to have seen unreleased dashcam video from one of the officer’s patrol cars. That video, he said in a statement Monday, shows Worcester taking White off his feet and “slamming” him to the ground—concussing him—after the deputy asked Worcester to identify himself. The officers’ violent response was a “necessity” given Worcester’s alleged resistance to arrest and assault, Wood said, which included biting and spitting on officers during the struggle. “The amount of force allowed under the law is always relative to the offense the suspect is committing,” Wood said. “In this case, this violent suspect demonstrated his willingness to commit serious violence and then continued to resist arrest.” Wood says the “compliance pats” — or punches — by officers were effective and necessary. The attorney said he is asking officials to release the video, but had not heard back as of Monday. The Daily Beast on Thursday could not reach the wood. “I understand that edited, clipped videos are the new rage on social media and news channels, but these MPs deserve the full truth to come out,” Wood said Monday. Johnson explained that they come from a family of police officers, and her sister, who asked to remain anonymous because she lives in the small town of 1,500, did not share the video as part of a vendetta against the police. “I was the first person my sister spoke to after she saw the attack. She was shocked and horrified,” Johnson said. “He told me, ‘I’ve always been nice to the cops. It’s in our family.” Johnson said her sister watched the incident as she pumped air into her tires. Once things got violent, Johnson said her sister approached the officers while she was recording, but eventually ran away for fear of being attacked next. “Her girlfriend told her to get in the car and they had to go,” Johnson said. “Because they were afraid, my sister said she was afraid the cops would come after her, like Randall did.” Johnson said her sister was ordered by the FBI to avoid media interviews because it would invalidate her statement to the feds in court. “My sister does not want her name to be revealed. He said, “don’t give it because I live here.” She still feels scared,” the sibling added. Worcester was briefly treated before being taken to the county jail. He posted $15,000 bond and was released after facing a slew of charges including battery, assault, resisting arrest, criminal trespass and more. The 27-year-old’s family shared their outrage over the incident exclusively with The Daily Beast on Monday, with his stepfather, Eric Wedding, saying he hopes the officers involved “burn.”
