Mayor ‘deeply disturbed’ by video of Queens cop kneeling on man’s neck

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An NYPD appeared to kneel on the neck of a man during an arrest on Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica on Jan. 2. Image via Legal Aid

An NYPD appeared to kneel on the neck of a man during an arrest on Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica on Jan. 2. Image via Legal Aid

By David Brand

The city has launched a “full investigation” after cell phone videos appear to show a Queens cop kneeling on a man’s neck during an arrest in Jamaica earlier this month, Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday.

Two videos taken by bystanders at the scene on Sutphin Boulevard appear to show an unnamed officer kneeling on the neck or head of 34-year-old Sircarlyle Arnold on Jan. 2. Observers scream for the cop to remove his knee from Arnold. The Long Island resident was arrested after driving an ATV during a large memorial ride for a recently deceased friend.

The videos drew immediate comparisons to the police killing of George Floyd, who died after suffocating under the knee of a Minneapolis cop in May 2020. The city criminalized police chokeholds in June 2020.

“After George Floyd was murdered, we passed a law to ban chokeholds and kneeling directly on people's necks,” de Blasio tweeted Thursday. “I've seen the video from a recent arrest and I'm deeply disturbed. A full investigation is underway and I demand immediate answers from the NYPD.”

Arnold was charged with misdemeanor reckless endangerment, four vehicle traffic offenses and misdemeanor marijuana possession.

His attorney Olayemi Olurin, of Legal Aid, said an officer “tapped” on Arnold’s ATV to tell him to stop riding. Arnold attempted to dismount but fell on the ground, where he was tackled by multiple officers, she said. 

At least three officers subdued Arnold against the asphalt. One appeared to kneel on his neck, the two cell phone videos show.
“It obviously reminded me of George Floyd and that’s what makes it especially egregious,” Olurin told the Eagle. “It’s not just the misconduct or brutality of it all. It’s more so the gall to do something so specific that received national if not international outrage.”

Arnold was charged with misdemeanor reckless endangerment and four traffic violations. He was arraigned Jan. 3 in Queens Criminal Court. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 24.

Legal Aid has called on Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz to drop the charges against Arnold and to prosecute the officers involved in the arrest and illegal restraint.

A spokesperson for Katz said the office is reviewing the case and the allegations against the officers.

“We are aware of the allegations against NYPD officers in the case of People v. Sircarlyle Arnold. Our Public Corruption Bureau is in the process of reviewing all evidence in this case, including the officers’ body worn camera videos,” the spokesperson said.

Queens prosecutors previously charged NYPD Officer David Afanador with strangulation and attempted strangulation after he restrained a suspect on a Rockaway boardwalk in June 2020, shortly after the city enacted a law making police chokeholds a misdemeanor.

It remains unclear who the officer is who used his knee to restrain Arnold.

A criminal complaint names 113th Precinct Officer Thomas Montario as the arresting officer, but the NYPD has not said whether the kneeling officer was Montario.

A police spokesperson said the department is investigating the case.

The complaint states that Arnold was driving his ATV, or quad, “in circles in the roadway, causing a public disturbance and shutting down northbound and southbound traffic.”

Arnold “swung the quad so close to the officer that he had to jump out of the way to avoid being struck,” the complaint continues.