CHICAGO – Police are questioning four people after video surfaced on social media showing the apparent torture of a young man with mental disabilities, police said Wednesday.
Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said the video, which police believe to be credible, shows a "brutal act toward an adult male with mental health challenges," according to WGN-TV.
The video, described as "sickening" by police at a press conference Wednesday, shows a bleeding, bound man lying in a corner as his alleged assailants yell profanities about white people and Donald Trump.
Four 18-year-olds, two females and two males, have been taken into custody for questioning, police said.
On Tuesday, patrol officers noticed something "didn't seem right" when they spotted a disoriented young man walking in the 3400 block of W Lexington, in Chicago's East Garfield Park neighborhood. The officers determined the male was reported missing from a Chicago suburb.
After speaking to the victim, the officers then responded to a home nearby. There, they discovered “signs of a struggle and damage to property.” Police say the officers connected this evidence to the disoriented male.
Regarding the disturbing video that surfaced on social media of a battery: Incident is under investigation/suspects… twitter.com/i/web/status/8…—
Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) January 04, 2017
The victim was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition. Police wouldn't specify the nature of his injuries, but said he is so traumatized that "it took most of the night for him to calm down enough to talk" to detectives.
Police say the victim and those being questioned attended the same school. Three of the four suspects are Chicago residents, and the victim is from a Chicago suburb, according to Chicago Police Dept. Commander Kevin Duffin. The fourth suspect is from Carpentersville, Illinois.
There doesn't appear to be any drug connection, and the victim is believed to have initially gone voluntarily with one of the suspects after they met in the suburbs, Duffin said.
Police also say the suspects stole a van in the suburbs and transported the victim into the city.
Chicago police said they are still investigating the events that preceded the Facebook Live video.
