Man is wrestled by police after he 'refused to get coronavirus test'

Elderly Chinese man who ‘refused to get a coronavirus test’ is wrestled to the ground by SWAT officers before being forced a swab

  • Shocking footage shows the villager being restrained by police in Hebei, China
  • The OAP reportedly refused to cooperate with mandatory COVID-19 screening
  • Four officers, including two in SWAT uniforms, are seen tackling the elderly man
  • They held him down while a hazmat-clad medic forcibly performed the virus test

This is the shocking moment an elderly man was wrestled to the ground by four police officers in China after he reportedly refused to take a test for the coronavirus.

Footage shows the silver-haired villager in northern China’s Hebei Province being tackled and restrained by the quartet, including two in SWAT uniforms, who were shouting aggressively and ordering him to remain still.

The officers then held the pensioner down on the floor while grabbing his face as a hazmat-clad medic forcibly performed the screening.


Footage shows the silver-haired villager in northern China’s Hebei Province being tackled and restrained by the officers who were shouting aggressively, ordering him to remain still

The disturbing scene is said to have occurred on January 11 in Hebei’s provincial capital Shijiazhuang, according to reports.

The northern region surrounding Beijing has become China’s new COVID-19 epicentre in recent weeks as a fresh wave of infections has rocked the country that had largely contained the outbreak.

Authorities have imposed stringent lockdowns on more than 20million people while conducted large-scale testing to curb the new outbreak.

The Saturday incident took place after the elderly man had allegedly refused to undergo a nucleic acid test for the virus. It remains unclear why he had disobeyed the government measure.

In the video obtained by Henan Television, the elderly man can be seen standing in front of a house, seemingly holding a brick in his hand, as the four officers approached him.


In the video obtained by Henan Television , the elderly man can be seen standing in front of a house, seemingly holding a brick in his hand, as the four officers approached him

The officers suddenly tackled the pensioner, with one of them head-locking the villager from behind while others trying to grab his arms.

A man, who appeared to be an officer filming the video, can be heard shouting: ‘Put down the brick!’

The elderly man first tried to resist before eventually being wrestled to the ground by the officers who were aggressively ordering him to remain still.

One officer said: ‘Now [we are] conducting a mandatory nucleic acid test on you.’

A health worker donning full-body protective suits rushed to collect swab samples as the police held the villager down while grabbing his face to prevent him from moving away.

The northern region of Hebei Province surrounding Beijing has become China’s new COVID-19 epicentre in recent weeks as a fresh wave of infections has rocked the country that had largely contained the outbreak. A man is seen in file photo being tested in Shijiazhuang on Tuesday

The man was finally freed after the medic confirmed that the testing had been completed.

The footage, which has circulated widely on Chinese social media, sparked a heated discussion online, with some web users condemning the authorities for their rough approach.

One commenter wrote: ‘He is an old man, is this really necessary?’

Another one agreed: ‘Maybe he didn’t understand the testing and was scared. They should have been more patient and tried to reason with him.’

Chinese authorities have imposed stringent lockdowns on more than 20million people while conducted large-scale testing. In this file photo taken on Tuesday, residents in Shijiazhuang line up to register for coronavirus tests during the city’s second round of screening

But other netizens approved the officers’ action, claiming that people need to follow the order amid the virus outbreak.

One of such comments read: ‘Everyone has the responsibility to help stop the virus. [We] must obey the anti-virus measures during these unusual times.’

The news comes as China has recorded its highest coronavirus daily figures today in 10 months with 124 new local infections.

It also reported the first death caused by the coronavirus since May, bringing the country’s death toll to 4,635.

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