A Georgia police officer falsely arrested a Black man, wrongly accusing him of simple battery and obstruction at a local Walmart. The Riverdale police department officer, Antonio Vives, claimed Jordan McDuffie assaulted him back in December last year. But “Indisputable with Dr. Rashad Richey” obtained exclusive, leaked video of the incident, which showed McDuffie walking by the officer without touching him.
The bystander cell phone video showed Vives lied about the incident, and no assault ever took place, despite his arresting the Black man. Riverdale police dropped the charges against McDuffie, and the city forced the police department to take Vives off the force.
“What he did was criminal. Not only did he engage in a false arrest, he provided a false police report. That’s criminal action. That’s criminal activity,” said Richey on his show. “He’s the only criminal in this video.”
But instead of being fired for fabricating a police report, Vives was allowed to resign and keep his record clean.
Sources told Rashad Richey, host of “Indisputable“, that this wasn’t the first time Vives showed racist behavior. A confidential source told Richey, “Vives posted and later removed a photo of a Black mannequin with no arms. He put on his [Facebook], ‘This is what an unarmed Black man looks like.'”
Vives also posted a video on Tiktok under the handle “@some_ga_cop” of him appearing to take notes inside a police squad car as he was listening to the audio of a man screaming, “No please,” and crying.
The city of Riverdale, about 30 miles south of Atlanta, and its police department have been investigated for their policing practices in the past. Police officers and residents have sued the Riverdale police department in the past. The US Department of Justice investigated the department after Riverdale Police Maj. Greg Barney filed a lawsuit in 2003 against the police department. The city also audited the police department in 2021 for allegations of racism and mismanagement.
‘Indisputable’ tracked down Vives, who now works for the Coweta County Sheriff’s Dept. The sheriff’s office is about 30 miles away from the Riverdale police department.
“Here’s why they decide to bring people like that back on the force. When their hands are dirty, guess what you can do? You can manipulate them. You can make them do your dirty work. You can make them part of your corrupt crew because they’re just happy to be back on the force. And they are there typically to do your dirty work and continue that ridiculous prejudice and adversarial conduct under the leadership of a new captain, chief, or sheriff,” said Richey.
Vives started a company called “Blue Light Jobs,” which he says helps people obtain careers in policing. Vives has a large following on TikTok and uses the hashtag #HumanizeTheBadge.
“What you did, you should have been arrested for initially. I’m positive this was not your first time simply arresting a black man on site,” said Richey. “Now to the person who was your victim? I highly encourage you, sir, to file a lawsuit if you have not already done so. You see, cops like this are the reason why we need not only reform but significant replacement. Systems that protect [Vives] are the reasons that the public no longer trust policing. So I’m not only calling you out for your criminal behavior against the Black male, but I’m also calling out the systems that decided to protect you.”
