LOS ANGELES, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- U.S. National Football League (NFL) superstar Michael Bennett accused police of excessive force for "simply being a black man" in an incident last month.
The sports star described the horrible experience in a letter he tweeted on Wednesday, slamming Las Vegas police officers held him at gunpoint and threatened to blow his head off.
Bennett is an American football defensive end for the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL.
"On Saturday, August 26, 2017 I was in Las Vegas to attend the Mayweather-McGregor fight on my day off. After the fight while heading back to my hotel several hundred people heard what sounded like gun shots. Like many of the people in the area I ran away from the sound, looking for safety. Las Vegas police officers singled me out and pointed their guns at me for doing nothing more than simply being a black man in the wrong place at the wrong time," he wrote.
"A police officer ordered me to get on the ground. As I laid on the ground, complying with his commands to not move, he placed his gun near my head and warned me that if I moved he would 'blow my F...king head off.' Terrified and confused by what was taking place, a second officer came over and forcefully jammed his knee into my back making it difficult for me to breathe. They then cinched the handcuffs on my wrists so tight that my fingers went numb," he continued.
Bennett said the police officers' excessive use of force was unbearable.
"I felt helpless as I lay there on the ground handcuffed facing the real-life threat of being killed. All I could think of was 'I' m going to die for no other reason than I am black and my skin color is somehow a threat.' "
According to Bennett, police officers released him at last for he was "not a thug, common criminal or ordinary black man, but Michael Bennett, a famous professional football player."
The video has prompted anger and controversies on Twitter and other social medias.
TMZ, a celebrity news website, has posted video of Bennett being handcuffed by police while lying face down on the concrete. He was heard in the video, screaming that "I wasn' t doing nothing, man! I was here with my friends! They told us to get out. Everybody ran."
NFL star Colin Kaepernick expressed his support for Bennett. He tweeted "This violation that happened against my Brother Michael Bennett is disgusting and unjust. I stand with Michael and I stand with the people."
Malcolm Jenkins, an American football safety for the Philadelphia Eagles, also voiced his support on Tweet for Bennett. He wrote that Michael Bennett's Vegas experience "is why we will relentlessly pursue equality and reform."
"We stand with you bro," he added.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMP) released a statement in response to Bennett's allegations.
"Reference a statement made by Michael Bennett, this case is under investigation. Reserve judgment. We will address this publicly today," wrote LVMP on Tweet.
"If Michael Bennett was not an @NFL player, your department would not spend any resources investigating this incident of excessive force," wrote Tweet user Francis Janes on LVMP's Tweet page.
