Teen Boy Punched By Police Officer In Viral Arrest Video Addresses Incident

The 14-year-old teenage boy seen in a viral arrest video, which featured a police officer punching him during a struggle on the ground, has come forward to address the situation and talk about what happened prior to the arrest.

According to Fox-40, Elijah Tufuno, the teenager in the video, says he was holding tobacco that a stranger had just purchased for him when an officer with the Rancho Corodova Police Department in Northern California approached him.

After the officer asked Elijah about the item in his hand, the teenager says he reflexively gave it to the officer, but then refused to give him his real age because he was scared. When the officer tried to arrest him, Elijah says that he pulled his hand away and that the officer “started getting aggressive.”

A clip of the altercation circulated widely on Twitter, and shows the officer trying to detain Elijah, who is on the ground and has been partially turned to face the dirt floor. After Elijah appears to try and turn around, the officer responds by punching him about three times, and then tossing him back around to face the floor.

De$@destiinoo_

RCPD brutally tackled and hit my best friend’s 14 year old brother today over a swisher sweet! The officer had no reason to brutalize and traumatize this boy like this! He has a pre existing health condition which could be fatal under this kind of stress! Unjustifiable!

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7:39 AM - Apr 28, 2020

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The events that immediately preceded the video segment remain unclear and an investigation is currently ongoing.

“I did lie to him and I didn’t cooperate, and I know that, and I made that mistake. But that didn’t give him no right to do what he did,” said Elijah, who was ultimately not taken to jail, during an interview with Fox-40.

The teenager also told Fox-40 that he has “nothing against the cop,” and wanted to apologize for not cooperating with him.

“Sir, I’m sorry for the way that I acted towards you and for not cooperating. And I just hope that we could meet again and be on better terms,” said Elijah.

In a statement, the Rancho Cordova Police Department said the teenager became “physically resistive” after the officer tried to detain him, which caused the officer’s handcuffs to land several feet away.

“This type of situation is hard on everyone – the young man, who resisted arrest, and the officer, who would much rather have him cooperate,” said the police department.

Justin Tufuno, the teenager’s uncle, posted a video of the altercation to Instagram, saying that the officer was “handling him like a man equal his size.” He told Fox-40 that watching the video was heartbreaking.

“It just kind of broke my heart. Anger and frustration went to sadness, especially the fact that he has a heart condition. And that’s the immediate thing that got to me,” he said. “I’m just so happy that he was able to come home alive.”