The Lewiston Police Department says it is investigating the conduct of an officer during an arrest that was caught on video and circulated on social media last week.
Kon Maiwan of Lewiston said he was just walking down the street when a police car went past him, circled around and began following him. He said he began filming on his phone after the officer told him to approach the vehicle, which made him nervous and scared.
In the short video, officer Parker Simoneau tells Maiwan, who is Sudanese, to move along, but then starts walking towards him, and pursues Maiwan as he runs away.
The video ends with Maiwan being tackled to the ground. Speaking at a local restaurant, he said he hopes that it will prompt police to create a conduct review board. He was worried about how it might affect his future and hoped charges could be dropped.
"I really love the city of Lewiston and I believe that the Lewiston Police Department can improve," he said. "But the only way is we have to understand what the each individual is doing."
Maiwan was charged with disorderly conduct, failure to submit to arrest and giving a false name.
In a press release issued Monday, Lewiston Police say Simoneau and a substance abuse counselor from Project Support You were responding to a sensitive call when Maiwan walked by and interfered. The agency works with police to respond to substance abuse-related calls.
The department says it is investigating Simoneau's conduct to make sure the arrest was handled correctly. It will be forwarded to the Attorney General's Office for review.
"While we understand, acknowledge and validate that the short clip may appear disturbing, it is not fully inclusive of all facts and circumstances of the interaction leading up to the arrest," the notice from Lewiston Police Chief David St. Pierre reads.
Maiwan, a former Lewiston city employee, is known for helping out in his community, such as handing out bottles of water to the homeless.
A GoFundMe organized by Project Relief, a former Black Lives Matter Maine chapter, is raising money to help him pay rent and obtain an attorney to help fight the charges.