24-year-old Johnny “JJ” Baldwin died begging for help from police officers as they watched him drown. According to reports, Baldwin begged for help three times and the officers made fun of him instead.
The New Yor Post reported that Baldwin fell into a creek while trying to flee police on foot after being pulled over for a minor traffic violation.
Bodycam footage captures the moment police arrived at the creek.
As Baldwin cried out for help, cops can be heard calling him a “dumb a**” and taunting him while failing to provide help.
“Well then, swim,” one officer says in response to Baldwin’s pleas. “Your dumb a** jumped in the river.”
One officer did offer to jump in and help, but the other officer stopped him.
When one officer pointed out that Baldwin was submerged, another officer was dismissive, saying that he was “doing it on purpose.”
Instead of being investigated, the officers were told that they did the right thing.
Speaking to ABC News, Winchester Police Chief Richard Lewis called the incident an “extremely sad situation,” adding that the officers “made the right decision” because it was dark and they did have the proper training for water rescues.
Take a look at the footage below:
