VIDEO: Toronto police arrest man on crowded TTC subway train

The Toronto Police Service's (TPS) Professional Standards Unit is investigating after videos surfaced on social media of several officers arresting a man on a TTC subway train.

In a video posted on Instagram on Thursday, five officers – four men and one woman – can be seen approaching a man sitting inside a train. This person seems very verbal and upset.

When they arrived, another passenger pointed it out to the police and said, “There it is.”

Moments later, male officers can be seen grabbing the man by the arms and legs as they lower him to the floor of the train. An officer is then seen kicking the man three times in the shoulder/upper area as someone yells, “Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, that's enough. Let it go.”

A screenshot of the video showing the arrest on a TTC train at Eglinton West Station on March 26. (DwayneConnellClothing/Instagram)

In a written statement released in response to a video of the incident sent to CTV News Toronto, police say they were called to the Eglinton West subway station around 11 a.m. on March 26 for reports of an “unknown disturbance.” .”

They say several people called 911 after a man assaulted a woman on a train and stole her phone.

The suspect, whose name police have not released, was arrested and charged with one count of robbery and three counts of failure to comply with probation.

Police have confirmed they are aware of a video circulating on social media and that the man in it is the man arrested and charged in connection with the incident at Eglinton West Station on March 26. They also told CTV News Toronto that neither the victim nor the suspect were injured.

In addition, the police said that they do not believe that a weapon was involved in this incident.

After watching the video, CTV News public safety analyst Chris Lewis said the officer's beating of the man was not justified.

“There was no need to kick him. It was clear that one officer stepped in front of the kicking officer and the female officer reached out to hold them back,” Lewis said.

“If he had a knife or something he wouldn't let go and they couldn't get him out of his hands, it would be fair game to hit him, but that's not the case.”

Lewis adds that if they suspect a man has a weapon, police may use a Taser or draw a gun.

“Yes, he was belligerent, yes, he seemed very angry and angry, which could have led to a fight, but he didn't get to that point. As soon as they got him under control, it was over, but the other officer who delivered the punches didn't let them do that,” Lewis said.

David Shelnut, managing partner of Biking Lawyer LLP, told CTV News Toronto that while the video was “pretty wild,” it wasn't as shocking as previous excessive force by Toronto police.

“We have these cases, you see them over and over again, where we've had officers overreach in making arrests. Maybe this person is a threat to people on the subway. “We know it's increased people's fear on the subway, and that should be accounted for, but if you have five officers and you've got someone in trouble, you don't need to kick them multiple times,” Shelnut said.

“We invest a lot in the police service and we give them the ultimate authority and trust, so they have to be careful about what they do and not violate that trust.”

Toronto police said they would not comment further on the professional standards investigation.

CTV News Toronto has reached out to the TTC for comment, as well as the person who posted the video of the incident on Instagram.

With files from Mike Walker of CTV News Toronto