BERLIN: In a shocking incident, a German paramedic allegedly punched a Syrian refugee in the face and broke his cheekbone while he was strapped down.
According to German police, they had restrained the 32-year-old Syrian after he allegedly attacked them with a ladder while drunk at a refugee shelter. The incident took place in Kassel last November.
It said the Syrian man, Amar H, had drunkenly emptied a fire extinguisher at the refugee shelter before collapsing on the ground by the time police found him.
Once he came round, he grabbed hold of a ladder to threaten officers and spat in their face after he was pepper-sprayed, police said. He allegedly continued to resist even once he was taken to an emergency vehicle, where one officer was apparently flung outside but not injured.
The police statement said Amar H had spent the night sobering up in a police cell and faced numerous charges including attacking emergency services.
But what they did not reveal was that after the man had been tied down he was apparently thumped in the head by the paramedic’s fist – with police looking on.
Surveillance footage of the punch has now been obtained by Bild, which reports that the paramedic has been fired and the police officers are under investigation.
Questioned by Bild, police initially put out a statement questioning whether the punch had actually connected with the man’s head or had just hit the side of the gurney.
In a subsequent statement, they admitted that the punch ‘in the direction of the man’s head’ by the 44-year-old paramedic had been included in a police report.
In the video, one officer is seen directly looking on as the punch occurs, while another walks around the paramedic immediately afterward rather than confronting him about it.
A medical report found that Amar H had broken his cheekbone, according to Bild, prompting his furious lawyer to file complaints against the paramedic and police.
Lawyer Adnan Aykac accused police of ‘downplaying’ the punch in what he said was adding further insult to his client’s injury. Prosecutors in Kassel say they are looking into the incident but their investigation is still ongoing.
Meanwhile, the paramedic’s employers say he was summarily dismissed as soon as they became aware of the allegation.
