Everyone from common citizens to celebrities have weighed in on the shooting death of 25 year old Ahmaud Arbery caught on video, however, new footage has emerged that may show cause of why a former Glenn County, Georgia law enforcement officer might have wanted to confront Arbery in particular.
In bodycam footage from 2017, an aggressive encounter between Arbery and members of the Glenn County Police Department ensues after police approach the 25 year old while sitting in his car alone.
After the police requested his ID, he explained that he was just in his car rapping. The officers claimed that Arbery was in a known drug area and they wanted to search him. When he refused the search, at least one officer became hostile and even drew his taser. Even with Arbery being cooperative to their demands, the officer still attempted to tase Arbery, but his taser malfunctioned.
Even after the malfunction, Arbery still complied with the officers’ demands. No drugs were found on Arbery or in his vehicle and he was released without as much as a citation.
Ahmaud was shot and killed on February 23 after being chased in a truck by father and son Travis and Gregory McMichael. The McMichaels weren’t arrested until 74 days later, due to the fact that Judicial Circuit District Attorney George Barnhill’s son and Gregory McMichael, a former GCPD officer and an investigator for the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office, were good friends.
