Seven deputies from Henrico County have been charged with the murder of Irvo Otieno, who died while in custody.
Otieno was supposed to receive mental health treatment while in custody, but surveillance video shows him being held down by all seven deputies, resulting in his death by asphyxiation.
Well-known civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump has joined Otieno’s legal team, which has already started presenting their case against the deputies.
The video allegedly shows the deputies holding Otieno down for 12 minutes, even though he was already handcuffed, and another video allegedly shows him being punched and pepper-sprayed by three of the deputies while alone in his cell.
The deputies are also accused of a cover-up, washing Otieno’s handcuffs and not calling the Virginia State Police to investigate until more than three hours after his death.
If convicted, the officers face up to 40 years in prison.
The Otieno family and their attorneys are expected to hold a news conference later today in Dinwiddie.
