960402

California police

club suspects near

Mexico border

LOS ANGELES: Two suspected illegal immigrant smugglers were clubbed repeatedly by police on Monday following a high-speed freeway chase that started near the U.S.-Mexico border.

The incident, captured on videotape by a TV news helicopter hovering overhead, showed one officer delivering at least six blows with a night-stick to one suspect even after the man was lying face down on the ground.

The officer then grabbed the second suspect, a woman, by the hair, pulling her from the cab of the pickup and beating her with his night-stick as reinforcements arrived to handcuff the pair, who appeared to offer no resistance. At least one other officer struck the woman, the TV images showed.

The Riverside County sheriff's deputies' action came after a battered, rusty pickup, crammed with at least 20 men and women, was pursued by several police cars at speeds approaching 100 mph along a major southern California freeway.

The two deputies involved in the beatings were suspended from active duty and placed on "administrative leave," pending the outcome of an investigation, sheriff's department officials said. Their names were not released.-Reuter