© Youtube/Antifa Denhaag
The Prosecutor's Officer (OM) said in a statement that Mitch Henriquez began to feel unwell on the way to the police station, following his arrest at the "Night in the Park" music festival in The Hague, nltimes.nl reported. Video footage shows the man was left without medical aid, lying lifeless and handcuffed on the grass while two agents were sitting on him. Henriquez seemed already unconscious when he was dragged into the police bus.
Witnesses said that Henriquez was making jokes with friends after the festival, shouting he had a weapon, when a group of officers approached him, afadenhaag.wordpress.com reported. Henriquez allegedly resisted his arrest. According to bystanders and his family, police used excessive force to arrest the man, afadenhaag.wordpress.com said.
His sister Lila told masnoticia.com that "his head was completely swollen, he was mainly beaten on his head. How could someone be handcuffed, thrown in the car and then arrive black and blue and unable to breathe?"
It's not the first time Dutch police officers have come under fire for excessive use of force. In 2012, a 17-year-old teenager, Rishi Chandrikasing, was shot dead on a railway station platform as he ran away from the police, according to dutchnews.nl. Police had been allegedly told that an armed man was threatening passengers. The teen turned out to be unarmed.
Comment: And so it begins. People took to the streets today in The Hague to protest against police violence and to demand justice for the death of Mitch Henriquez. Police officers were present as well: