Philly police investigate viral video of officer shoving man over apparent social media interaction

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The Philadelphia Police Department is investigating a viral video showing an officer shoving a man during an encounter in West Philadelphia, while accusing him of liking photos of the officer's daughter on social media.

The roughly 40-second video shows two Philadelphia police officers arriving at a home near 54th and Arlington streets last Thursday.

One officer gets out of the vehicle, approaches a group of men and shoves one of them.

"You want to like my daughter's pictures?" the officer says.

The officer then shoves the man, then turns toward the person recording the encounter and knocks the phone out of his hand.

Action News spoke with the man who was shoved, Jerald Bridges, who said the confrontation was the second encounter he had with the same officer that day.

Bridges said the first interaction happened just hours earlier outside a nearby store.

"He told me to move, and I told him, I said, 'I'm waiting for my food,'" Bridges said. "He said, 'You're not moving fast enough, I'm gonna give you a CVN.' I said, 'Alright.' When I started to walk off, he grabbed me and put me in handcuffs."

Bridges said he received a citation and recorded video from the back of the police cruiser, which he said shows the officer involved in the later confrontation.

A few hours later, Bridges said, the two crossed paths again, resulting in the encounter captured on video.

But Bridges disputes the officer's accusation that he liked photos of his daughter.

"I never liked no pictures. I never liked no pictures," he said.

Bridges acknowledged that some of his friends had commented on the officer's Halloween photos.

"He had a clown outfit on for Halloween, and they said that outfit suits you," Bridges said. "No one liked his daughter's pictures. Nobody never disrespected his daughter."

Bridges also alleges the officer threatened him during an exchange that was not captured on video.

He said he now fears for his safety, citing the officer's access to a firearm and his personal information.

Action News reached out to the Fraternal Order of Police for comment but has not received a response.

The Philadelphia Police Department confirmed it is aware of the video and is investigating. The department declined to comment further.