Watch: Dramatic arrest leaves alleged burglar bleeding from dog bite, ‘enquiries’ into officers involved

Police are making enquiries with several officers after dramatic footage emerged of the arrest of an alleged burglar in Auckland, in which the suspect was lightly kicked and a police dog bit him, leaving a puddle of blood.

Following the arrest in the suburb of Hillsborough, one of the officers can be seen attempting to wash the blood away with a garden hose from a nearby property.

Video of the arrest captures two officers apprehending the 37-year-old male suspect in the driveway of a property on Seacliffe Rd after he had fled from police on a dirt bike and been tracked by the Police Eagle helicopter.

Acting superintendent Trevor Beggs told the Herald in a statement that officers were responding to a suspected burglar at a property in Hillsborough Road.

Beggs said that upon arrival two men were disturbed and fled from the property. One of the men, a 41-year-old, was located and arrested at the scene.

“The second man was seen fleeing on a dirt bike and was located nearby on Seacliffe Road by the Police Eagle helicopter,” Beggs said.

“He continued to actively evade police and proceeded to jump over fences through a number of properties.

“As a result a police dog handler deployed into the area and located a man jumping fences. This man was called upon to stop but continued to evade police and resisted arrest.”

At this point a police dog was deployed to stop the man, Beggs said.

The footage of the arrest at the Seacliffe Rd property shows the alleged burglar wearing a backpack and being cornered by two officers approaching at opposite ends of a driveway.

He is initially brought to ground by the police dog, who bites him on the calf and holds onto him. The two officers quickly approach the man, pin him to the ground and proceed to handcuff him.

The officer who puts the handcuffs on the suspect both hits the suspect on the head with the handcuffs and kicks him in the side as the man is pinned beneath the other officer.

During this process, which lasts for 40 seconds, the police dog continues to hold onto the man’s leg while thrashing its head.

The suspect can be heard screaming throughout this process and yelling “I’m sorry”.

The witness filming the arrest from the sidewalk at one points yells out to the officers “yo” and appears to be concerned for the wellbeing of the man under arrest.

About halfway through the arrest, it does appear one of the officers is attempting to pull the dog off the suspect, as the animal continues to bite him.

Police Acting Superintendent Beggs said the 37-year-old suspect was transported to hospital for treatment.

“Police note footage or images captured through various phases of a response to an incident does not always capture the full context of what our staff are dealing with,” Beggs said.

“Enquiries are currently under way with the police staff involved in both the tracking and the arrest of the offender.”

Beggs said the 37-year-old who fled police was subsequently found to be breaching court-imposed bail for other offending, and had an outstanding warrant.

Police would not comment on whether it was standard procedure for officers to wash away blood from the scene of an arrest on their own.

The witness who filmed the incident said the officer was attempting to do this directly after the man had been apprehended.