Bodycam shows Arizona cops standing by while man begs for help before drowning

A person drowned to dying in an Arizona lake as cops stood by and allegedly ignored his pleas for assist, in accordance with a bodycam transcript of the interplay.

Law enforcement officials had been responding to a reported disturbance between a pair close to the Elmore Pedestrian Bridge in Tempe on Might 28 when one of many individuals jumped into the lake, the native station Information 12 reported.

Sean Bickings, 34, and his accomplice denied that any bodily altercation had occurred when officers arrived simply after 5 a.m.

The officers then advised the couple that they had been working their names to examine if both had any excellent arrest warrants when Bickings climbed over a four-foot fence in the direction of the water and dove in, bodycam footage obtained by Information 12 reveals.

“I’m gonna go for a swim,” Bickings mentioned within the video. “I’m free to go proper?”

The cops advised Bickings that he was not allowed to swim within the lake as they stood on the opposite aspect of the fence.

Bickings might be seen taking a couple of strokes out from the shore as one officer asks the others “How far do you suppose he’s going to have the ability to swim?” earlier than the video ends.

Tempe police didn’t launch all the video of the incident as a result of they mentioned the drowning itself was too delicate, in accordance with News12, and as an alternative offered a transcript of the footage.

Within the transcript, Bickings tells the officers he’s drowning and so they inform him to swim over to the pylon and seize ahold of it to maintain himself afloat.

“I’m drowning,” he mentioned.

“Come again over to the pylon,” one officer responded.

“I can’t. I can’t,” Bickings mentioned.

“Okay, I’m not leaping in after you,” the opposite officer mentioned.

“Please assist me. Please, please, please,” Bickings begged. “I can’t contact. Oh God, Please assist me. Assist me.”

Bickings’ accomplice additionally pleads with the officers to do one thing to assist him.

“I’m simply distraught as a result of he’s drowning proper in entrance of you and also you received’t assist,” she mentioned.

One of many officers threatens to place her in his police automotive if she didn’t settle down, in accordance with the transcript.

The lady replies that she was making an attempt to calm herself however was getting emotional as a result of she liked Bickings and cared deeply about him.

At the very least one officer tried to get a ship to rescue Bickings, nevertheless it was too late.

Bickings went underneath the water’s floor and drowned.

It’s unclear how a lot time handed between him coming into the water and drowning. His physique was recovered from the lake hours later at 11:20 a.m.

Scottsdale police and the division of public security are investigating the incident and police response.

The three cops who responded to the disturbance name and witnessed the drowning have been positioned on paid administrative go away pending the investigation, in accordance with News12.