LAS VEGAS — NFL defensive end Michael Bennett was taken to the ground and forcibly cuffed after the Mayweather – McGregor fight in Vegas. He says he and many others amongst a crowd of people started to run when they heard gunshots ring out just outside of the event. Out of everyone running, Bennett was the only one taken to the ground by force and arrested. He did not claim he was targeted as an individual, but did say that he believes race factored into how the situation unfolded and the subsequent police brutality he experienced. On Saturday morning the Las Vegas Police Department confirmed that race absolutely influenced their thought process during the incident.
“Michael Bennett is a big guy. He’s like really big, like massive,” said Officer Merle Dickson. “But not only is he big. He’s black and scary. He didn’t do anything wrong per se. However, he’s definitely guilty of something and in my eyes, that’s at the very least, the fact that he’s big, black, and scary.”
The Las Vegas Police Department will continue to make unsubstantiated and extremely vague claims to deride Bennett’s integrity. For now though, they feel fairly confident that their officers acted well within their rights to take down the scary black man, who made them feel threatened by moving all fast and shit.
