The clip shows ten people taking turns holding Irvo Otieno down until he can no longer breathe. For twelve minutes, the promising musician fought for his life. – My son was tortured, says Otieno’s mother Caroline Ouko. It was on March 3 that 28-year-old Irvo Otieno was arrested in Richmond, Virginia, on suspicion of burglary. In connection with the arrest, authorities stated that Otieno assaulted three police officers, after which he was detained and charged. A couple of days later he was taken to a mental hospital due to his mental illness. There he is said to have been pepper-sprayed and beaten several times before ten authorities took Irvo Otieno’s life. “They choked him to death,” the prosecutor told CNN, something even forensics could establish. Seven police officers and three paramedics are now being prosecuted for the murder, which attracted a lot of attention in the United States. “When did mental illness become a crime?” Irvo Otieno’s mother Caroline Ouko described her son as a person with a big heart who was always there for his friends. He is also said to have been in the starting pit for a music career that never got off the ground. When Otieno’s family were shown the video clip of the incident, they described it as “heartbreaking”. – My son was treated like a dog, worse than a dog, said his mother Caroline. – When did mental illness become a crime? Brother Leo Ochieng wondered. The murder of Irvo Otieno has many similarities to other cases of police brutality against blacks in the United States, including what happened to George Floyd who was choked to death by a white police officer in 2020. Watch the clip from the surveillance footage and the memorial ceremony in the player above.
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Ten people push down Irvo, 28 – until he can no longer breathe
