Video showing Providence officers striking man during arrest under investigation

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Providence police and the mayor’s office are investigating after a video shared on social media appeared to show officers repeatedly hitting a man in handcuffs during an arrest on Pembroke Street. Authorities said the incident happened April 24 and involved officers attempting to take a man into custody.

Providence police said officers first responded to Pembroke Avenue on April 24 while assisting in an investigation involving reports of a person with a knife connected to an earlier incident near Dartmouth and Broad streets.

According to police, officers stopped William Mitchell after they said he was separating himself from a group gathered in the roadway near Providence College student housing. Officers frisked Mitchell for weapons, detained him during the investigation and said he repeatedly touched officers and disrupted their attempts to investigate.

Police said Mitchell ignored several warnings to stop interfering, so officers handcuffed him and placed him in a cruiser while they continued looking into the original call. After determining no charges would be filed related to the knife investigation, officers released him.

Police said Mitchell later returned to the area and began recording officers on his cellphone while yelling obscenities and attempting to provoke reactions from officers and nearby Providence College students. Officers said a crowd began forming around the scene, leading them to arrest Mitchell for disorderly conduct.

During the arrest, police said Mitchell resisted attempts to place him in handcuffs, struggled with officers and kicked and spat at police. Video later shared online showed officers pinning Mitchell to the ground before one officer appeared to punch him multiple times while he was handcuffed.

Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said the department’s Internal Affairs Bureau is reviewing the incident, while Mayor Brett Smiley confirmed the city is also conducting its own review. Officials said additional information could be released once the investigation is complete.