Authorities in Providence, RI are investigating the death of a man who passed away while being arrested by officers early Friday.
The victim, later identified as Joseph Ventre, was screaming and acting erratically in the streets at around 12:30 a.m.
When police arrived, they determined that the 34-year-old was likely under narcotics’ influence.
Ventre wouldn’t stop yelling and groaning despite cops spending over 10 minutes calming him down.
As they waited for an ambulance, Ventre engaged the officers in a “minor struggle” before he was put in handcuffs and hold down on his stomach.
90 seconds later, an emergency responder arrived but the man then went limp, stopping screaming and moving.
He was motionless on the stretcher and was pronounced dead at a hospital at around 1:41 a.m.
Providence Police, Rhode Island State Police, and the Rhode Island Attorney General have launched an investigation into the death.
