Man who filmed Freddie Gray arrested ‘at gunpoint’

The man who filmed the brutal arrest of African-American Freddie Gray by Baltimore police was arrested “at gunpoint” after he left a protest over police brutality.

Kevin Moore, 30, was arrested early on Friday in what he described as a clear case of “witness intimidation.”

The video, captured by his cellphone, shows the arresting officers roughly lifting a handcuffed Gray from the ground and dragging him screaming to the back of a police van, where he suffered a fatal spine injury. Gray, 25, died a week after his arrest.

Moore, an African American himself, said police tried to harass him because he handed over the footage and talked to the media about what he witnessed.

Baltimore police also arrested two of Moore’s friends, who work with Copwatch, an activist organization that advocates for the filming of interactions with police.

Moore was later released without any charges being filed against him. But his two friends, Chad Jackson and Tony White, remain in custody.

Moore talked to the media about the circumstances of his arrest. “They waited until I got away from the protest and my people to protect me,” he told VICE News on Friday.

“They had assault weapons, rifles, they had everything — their tank, two choppers,” he recalled. “They took me to the Western District [police station], never gave me charging papers or anything.”

The majority black city of Baltimore has been the site of daily demonstrations since Gray’s death on April 19, as tensions simmer over police brutality and discrimination against African Americans.

Elijah Cummings (2R) and Maryland state Sen. Majority Leader Catherine Pugh march with other Freddie Gray protesters in Baltimore, while police in riot gear stand guard on May 1, 2015. (AFP photo)
Protesters defied a nightly curfew for a fourth straight night Friday to express anger at police.

Baltimore’s chief prosecutor said Friday six officers were charged in connection with the death of Gray.