SA Police investigating after phone footage shows man shoved, dragged during arrest

SA Police officers are being investigated under disciplinary rules after footage surfaced online showing the use of force during an arrest. See the video.

An SA Police officer threw a man against a wall and dragged him across a concrete driveway during an arrest, in phone camera footage shared to social media.

The two clips without audio were taken at a Davenport residence, near Port Augusta, on Saturday, November 16.

SA Police said there was “an altercation between police and a man not living at the address”, who has been charged with hindering and assaulting officers.

The footage, shared more than 2400 times on Facebook, shows a man in a red and black windcheater approaching a male officer, who is in a group of three.

They are only a few inches from each other’s faces when the officer thrusts the man against a wall, knocking him to the ground.

The footage initially shows the man in the red and black windcheater approaching the officer. Picture: Facebook

In the next instant, the officer shoves the man against the wall, bringing him to the ground. Picture: Facebook

A separate clip, taken moments later, shows the same officer pulling the man by the arm over a concrete driveway.

They come to a stop on the footpath outside the property, and the officer then places a knee on the man’s hip while handcuffing him.

In a subsequent clip, the same officer then pulls the man along the ground, bringing him to a stop on the footpath outside the property. Picture: Facebook

The officer then restrains the man by placing a knee on his hip, before handcuffing him. Picture: Facebook

In a statement, an SA Police spokesperson said the officers’ body cameras have been reviewed in their entirety and “police are assessing the full circumstances of this incident”.

“As this incident is the subject of a complaint, the Police Complaints and Discipline Act would ordinarily prohibit the disclosure or publication of information in connection with it,” the spokesperson said.

“However, the Commissioner has determined to authorise both the disclosure and publication of the above information in relation to this complaint as it is in the public interest to do so.

“For clarity, no further information in relation to this incident is to be disclosed or published, pursuant to the Police Complaints and Discipline Act.”

Because of police disciplinary rules, The Advertiser has blurred the officers’ faces to avoid identifying them.

The man who was arrested, a 42-year-old from Davenport, was bailed to appear in the Port Augusta Magistrates Court on Thursday, February 6.

The person who originally shared the footage has been contacted for comment.

Originally published as SA Police investigating after phone footage shows man shoved, dragged during arrest