Minneapolis police investigating video of officer threatening to break suspect's legs

An internal affairs investigation has been launched into a profanity-laced video that appears to show a local police officer threatening to break the legs of a suspect if he attempted to escape.

The incident, which allegedly happened sometime last month in south Minneapolis, was recorded on a camera phone by one of the young men being arrested. The footage was later posted to Twitter by @StIllA_Hitta and has been retweeted nearly 250 times.

In the video, the unidentified officer can be heard telling the suspect: "Plain and simple, if you (expletive) with me, I'm gonna break your legs before you get a chance to run."

It was not immediately clear what led to the arrest, but at one point the youth is heard asking the officer why he was being taken into custody, to which the policeman responds: "Because I feel like arresting you."

The officer's face remains obscured throughout the 30-second video.

Department spokesman John Elder said Thursday that internal affairs investigators were probing the incident, but cautioned against making assumptions about the case before the facts are known.

"The video is currently under investigation and we are unable to comment on the content of the video," Elder said in an emailed statement. "MPD values our connection to the community and we strive to build public trust. This is why complaints against officers are taken seriously and investigated to the fullest extent. We will make information available to the public as soon as legally possible."

Police union officials and the Twitter user who originally posted the video didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.

The video, which contains vulgar language, can be found here.