Coronavirus Melbourne: Man arrested delivering food to Flemington public housing towers
A man pulled to the ground by police and arrested said he “couldn’t breathe” during a scuffle outside the Melbourne flats in lockdown.
Tensions flared outside the lock downed public housing blocks last night when a man was pulled to ground and arrested by police after he became “verbally aggressive”.
The man was part of a group that said they were trying to deliver food to some of the 3000 residents after claims many of those inside hadn’t been given adequate provisions.
In a video of the heated incident shared on Instagram, a man can be heard saying “I can’t breathe” as he is pinned to the ground by several police.
In an Instagram post, the woman who filmed the fracas, Tigist Kebede, said the incident happened when they tried to send food to the flats.
“All day we’ve begged and pleaded to get essential supplies,” she wrote alongside the clip.
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“I’m the one begging so he doesn’t become another police death.”
In the video, Ms Kebede can be heard screaming “please stop” as the man is tackled.
Talking to officers she said she was a mental health worker and wanted to make sure the man was OK, which police allow her to do from a distance.
A man can be heard saying, “These guys are sick, bro. I didn’t touch him.”
In a statement, Victoria Police told news.com.au they were following up an incident after a man became “verbally aggressive” towards officers outside a locked down residential block of flats in Flemington on Tuesday night.
Police said the man was believed to have approached police after getting out of a car in Holland Court at about 9.50pm.
“When the man approached police, another male also appeared to join the unknown man along with numerous other people on the roadway who tried to restrain the men which impeded police," police said.
“The unknown man ran off from the scene, while the other man, a 28-year-old from Altona North who was refusing the direction of police, was arrested.
“The Altona North man has been released pending further inquiries with police still to follow up the identity of the unknown man.
“All present at the scene were moved on by police to avoid any further breaches of the peace.
“Police are investigating if the incident with the unknown man, which occurred during the middle of a food delivery by a local charity, is related to a minor incident at the same address earlier in the week. It is not believed to be related to the delivery of food.”
Ms Kebede later said: “He’s survived. He’s free now.”