A Venezuelan migrant holding his toddler was hit by a stun gun and punched in the face by police officers at a New York City migrant shelter in an act caught on video — and defended by the mayor as "appropriate."
The video, obtained and published by The New York Times on Tuesday, showed the moment two officers confronted Yanny Cordero, 47, at a city-run shelter in Jamaica, Queens borough, on Friday.
The clip showed two officers pin Cordero against closed elevator doors as he was holding his year-old son.
One officer brought out a yellow stun gun and deployed it on the man, its trilling sound audible. Moments later, that same officer appeared to punch the man in the face.
A woman crying and screaming near Cordero appeared to be pulled away from him after the punch and the child he was holding was also separated from him.
In front of Cordero and the officers were two officers in military garb and several spectators. The man filming the altercation was heard yelling in Spanish: “This is abuse!"
The two officers struggled to detain Cordero, then tried to pin him against a nearby desk. A third police officer entered the altercation and punched Cordero twice in the face, triggering more yelling and uproar from witnesses.
Three officers ultimately subdued Cordero onto the ground.
The man who filmed the interaction yelled, “Hey they’re hitting him! Hey don’t hit him, don’t hit him, don’t hit him, brother. That’s abuse. Where are the human rights?”
The clip ended with Cordero on the ground with officers around him.
The New York City Police Department said it responded to the shelter late Friday around 11 p.m. over a dispute involving an intoxicated man "who was threatening staff members."
Officers gave the Cordero multiple warnings and commands to give the child to someone else and he refused, police said.
However, Cordero told the Times that he hadn’t been drinking because he had to work the next day.
Cordero, who does not speak English, told the Times that the dispute erupted after he returned to the shelter with dinner he purchased outside the shelter. He said a shelter employee seemed to tell him in English that he couldn't take the food up to his room.
He told the Times that he used a translation app on his phone to try to communicate that he was going to eat in the cafeteria when the shelter employee’s colleague was called over and struck him in the face.
Police said the child was unharmed in the incident and the city's Administration for Children’s Services was notified and responded.
Cordero was charged with resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and violent behavior, obstructing government administration and acting in a manner injurious to a child under 17.
His wife Andrea Parrar, 22, who in the clip threw her body between her husband and the officers, was also charged with resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and fighting, and obstructing government administration, police said.
The family was reunited Monday with their children. They were given a new shelter placement in Brooklyn after requesting to be moved, the mayor's office told NBC News.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer himself, said the officers took "appropriate action" during an unrelated press conference Tuesday.
“I saw that incident and I spoke with the commissioner over the weekend," Adams said. "Those officers had to get that child from him so that child was not going to be in danger. All of this is on body-worn camera. Those officers responded to a person who was dangerous and took appropriate actions."
"Domestic incidents are extremely dangerous. These are very volatile situations. Those officers have to respond accordingly. They wanted to get that child out of that gentleman’ hand after warning him several times asking him to turn over the child, he refused to. He was violent, he was volatile, they had to take that necessary action and based on our review, those officers took appropriate action," he added.
New York City Hall said the matter is under investigation, but it's not clear which agency is looking into the case.
“We are aware of an incident involving a family in our care at an emergency shelter in Jamaica, Queens Friday night. The health and safety of all migrants and longtime New Yorkers in our care — especially young children — is always a top priority, and this matter is currently under investigation,” City Hall said.