• A video showing a young boy wailing while police detained him went viral earlier this week.
  • Syracuse Police later said the boy was accused of stealing and that the incident was under review.
  • The boy's father said the incident was over a $3 bag of chips.

A viral video that showed a young boy in Syracuse, New York, wailing as he was placed into a police car was over a $3 bag of chips, according to the boy's father.

The video, taken and posted by a bystander on Sunday, showed an officer holding the 8-year-old boy's arms behind his back as he cries out, while other young boys can be seen nearby. It was not clear what happened prior to the start of the video, but a bag of what appears to be Cool Ranch Doritos and chips can be seen on the ground. Another bag is in the hands of the officer holding the boy.

 

The video opens with the bystander asking the police what they are doing.

"Guess. Take a guess what I'm doing," the officer holding the boy responds.

"He looks like a baby to me," the bystander says, before he and the officers begin shouting at each other while the boy is led to the back of the police car. The boy can be heard crying from the car while the bystander continues to engage with the police.

The Syracuse Police Department acknowledged the video in a statement on Tuesday, saying the video showed their officers and juveniles who were accused of stealing from a store on the city's North Side.

"The incident, including the Officers' actions and body-worn cameras, are being reviewed," the statement said, adding there had been some misinformation being shared about the incident and that the boy, who was suspected of larceny, was not handcuffed.

The statement added officers brought the boy home and spoke with his father. No charges were filed.

Police spokesman Lt. Matthew Malinowski confirmed to Insider the boy was 8 years old and said more information would be released from the police and the mayor on Thursday.

The boy's father, Anthony Weah, told Syracuse.com he had met with police at his home over the incident. The officers were friendly and told him his sons were accused of stealing chips from a store, Weah said.

Only later did he see the video shared online that showed his son wailing.

"Why would the police treat that child like that?" Weah said to the outlet. "Over a $3 bag of chips."

Weah told Syracuse.com he wants to file a complaint over the incident. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.

"The policeman, they are not children," Weah said, adding: "They are not boys, they're men."

Read the original article on Insider