Police Sergeant Chokes Female Officer for Pulling Him off Black Suspect

A 21-year veteran of Sunrise, Florida, police is under criminal investigation after new body cam footage has been released.

Sgt. Christopher Pullease of the Sunrise Police Department was seen choking a female subordinate on film after an altercation involving a Black male suspect that Pullease was roughing up.

“Look at me, m—–f—–. You wanna play f—— games? You wanna get disrespectful with my f—— officers? I will remove your f—— soul from your f—— body,” Pullease can be heard yelling at a handcuffed Black man in the back of a cruiser in a newly released recording.

According to WSVN 7 News Miami, the sergeant then proceeds to choke a fellow woman officer after she tries to pull him away from the arrested man in an attempt to de-escalate the exchange. Muted body cam footage of the Nov. 19 incident was released in January, however, new audio recording was just released to reveal a more violent interaction than previously observed.

As BLACK ENTERPRISE reported, Pullease can be seen leaning into the backseat of a squad car, where a handcuffed Black suspect is sitting. The 25-year-old man was arrested for aggravated battery after hitting people outside a convenience store.

As Pullease’s interaction with the suspect escalates and he talks about removing his soul, a woman in uniform attempts to intervene by grabbing the sergeant’s belt and pulls him backwards.

Without hesitation, Pullease spins around, grabs her by the throat and pushes her back several steps, as other policemen stand idly by. He then returns to the vehicle before saying, “What the f—, don’t you ever f—— touch me again. Get the f— off me,” as the female officer is still trying to diffuse her attacker.

The sergeant returns to his car for a moment before coming back to the waiting officers and then commands them to turn their body cams off.

NEW: 7Investigates obtained the *audio* from Sunrise Police Sgt. Christopher Pullease’s interaction with a handcuffed suspect and confrontation with a fellow officer. The sergeant is currently under criminal investigation. w/@KarenHenselTV watch full @wsvn https://t.co/yyei2bbUsW pic.twitter.com/4mbRUF4Dpl

— Daniel Cohen (@DCohenNEWS) March 24, 2022

“I find this behavior to be disgusting. I think the video speaks for itself,” said Sunrise Police Chief Anthony Rosa. “I find it to be inappropriate and unprofessional, because what he did is he escalated the situation when calm was actually required.”

The Florida police department has suspended Pullease since last November and are conducting an internal investigation. According to Sunrise public information officer Justin Yarborough, a criminal investigation has been underway since footage of the attack was released in January.

The department has since praised the female junior officer for stepping in, however Pullease’s charges have yet to be disclosed.