By Anna Ballweber, Valley News Live
FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – Fargo Police Chief, Dave Zibolski, is responding to recent assaults on officers, including an incident that’s since gone viral.
According to police, in just one week, there have been two violent attacks on Fargo officers.
Last week, a female officer was attacked by a minor – all caught on camera. She was kicked in the head while trying to detain the suspect.
“That officer is still out with some pretty significant injuries and will probably be out for a while,” Zibolski says.
Just four days later, another assault came to light. Police say 37-year-old, Joseph Manitowabi, punched three officers in the head before making a run for it. After a short foot pursuit, Manitowabi was arrested on several charges.
This incident was captured on video and has since circulated around on social media, receiving thousands of views. Valley News Live is currently working to obtain the rights to the video showing the assault.
The Chief of Police claims he hasn’t yet seen that video. He says, “The video clip… I haven’t even seen the whole incident in total.” Adding, “I’m sure for the officers involved, it’s embarrassing the video is being pushed out all over the place.”
Community members who’ve seen the video, however, are voicing their concerns. Some have taken to social media calling the recent encounter “embarassing” and bringing forth questions around training
Chief Zibolski says he’s not interested in these kind of comments.
“Honestly, if they’re not saying, ‘I can’t believe this guy attacked the police and why is he not in prison?’ I’m not really interested… I think people should hold off Monday quarterbacking this thing. We’ll review the video in full ourselves, give the benefit of the doubt to the officers, and go from there.”
The chief explains training within the Fargo Police Department is extensive, and doesn’t stop after graduation. He says resiliency training is given for those bouncing back from attacks like these.
