‘Sickening’ video shows white man terrorized by black assailants cursing Donald Trump
Four people are in custody after a disturbing Facebook Live video showed them terrorizing a man with mental health issues in Chicago.
Chicago police officials said two men and two women are in custody and charges are pending. All of the people in custody are 18 years old, according to police.
In the 30-minute video, which was posted Tuesday, a white man is seen tied up with duct tape around his mouth as black assailants mock him, cut him, smack him and curse President-elect Donald Trump. They appear to put out a cigarette in his scalp wound.
At one point, they tell the victim they are planning to put him in the trunk of a car and attach a brick to the gas pedal.
A black woman is seen on camera for most of the video, smoking and laughing. She makes several references to her sister posting in the comments.
CPD press conference regarding disturbing live social media video depicting a battery ; victim was tied up https://t.co/jDrjfz4sJV
— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) January 5, 2017
The video is no longer available on Facebook, but several users have posted it to YouTube. It contains explicit language.
The victim attended school with one of the assailants, according to Chicago police, who say the man was picked up in the Chicago suburbs and driven to the location in the city.
Chicago police and prosecutors are considering hate crime charges. Chicago police called the video “sickening” during a press conference Wednesday.
“It’s sickening,” Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said. “It makes you wonder what would make individuals treat somebody like that. I’ve been a cop for 28 years and I’ve seen things you shouldn’t see. It still amazes me.”
Regarding the disturbing video that surfaced on social media of a battery: Incident is under investigation/suspects are being questioned pic.twitter.com/GGi3qs9rGv
— Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) January 4, 2017
The victim is currently recovering and has been traumatized by the incident, police said. It is unclear how he was able to get away or whether he was released. He was found by patrolmen, who found him to be “in distress and in crisis.”
Three of the assailants are Chicago residents and one lives nearby. A missing persons report was filed for the victim before he was found by patrolmen after the incident.
This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 8:27 PM with the headline "‘Sickening’ video shows white man terrorized by black assailants cursing Donald Trump."