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- An Aurora Police Department sergeant was placed on leave after body camera footage showed he yelled and cursed at a teen girl.
- A fellow officer reported the sergeant, launching an internal investigation, the APD said in a statement.
- Body camera footage released this week showed how the incident unfolded on June 29.
A police sergeant in Colorado was placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation after he yelled and cursed at a teenaged driver during an arrest.
A fellow officer reported the behavior of Sgt. Ed Acuti of the Aurora Police Department, the APD said in a statement to Insider.
The incident unfolded on June 29 this year, but the body camera footage was released Wednesday. According to the statement, the altercation began when the department's Gang Intervention Unit stopped a car for speeding. A male passenger got out of the car and "ran from officers, and while doing so, dropped a loaded, stolen firearm," police said.
It's not clear when Acuti was placed on leave by the department.
The 17-year-old girl who was driving the vehicle was detained, police said. Video footage showed her yelling for officers to call her mother.
"You better keep your fucking mouth shut. I'll make your life a living fucking hell from this fucking day forward," Acuti yelled at one point during the interaction, according to body camera footage.
"Y'all kill people! Call my mom!" the driver yelled, WGN9 first reported. "If I wanted to run, you think I would have pulled over?"
The 17-year-old yelled profanities at the officers, at which point Acuti can be heard on the video yelling back, WGN9 reported.
"You think I'm out here playing fucking games?" he said. "You're out of your fucking mind, and I'll tell your mom the same fucking thing. I'm sure your mom would be real happy that your fucking man's got a gun in his fucking waistband, running around fucking town. Right?
At one point during the altercation, Acuti slammed his hand on the vehicle.
"Whose fucking car is this? Tell me! Whose fucking car is this? 'Cause it's gonna go to the fucking impound and I don't give a fuck how you get around. Are we fucking clear?" he continued. "You better keep your fucking mouth shut. I'll make your life a living fucking hell from this fucking day forward.
"I don't care how the fuck old you are. Let that fucking sink in," he added.
In its statement, the APD said Acuti used "profane and unprofessional language not consistent with the training or expectations of an Aurora Police officer."
The driver of the vehicle was taken to the Aurora Jail and later released with charges for speeding, driving without a valid license, and obstructing a peace officer, police said.
In APD's statement, Police Chief Vanessa Wilson said officers "strive to treat individuals with respect and remain professional."
"I commend the officers that are unwilling to compromise their integrity and continue to report misconduct that jeopardizes the work we, as an agency, are trying to accomplish with our community," Wilson said in the statement.
APD was previously fell under scrutiny following the death of Elijah McClain, the 23-year-old man who died in 2019 after police put him in a chokehold. An investigation by Colorado's attorney general's office found APD had a pattern of racially biased policing.