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Footage has emerged of an American police officer pepper-spraying a large crowd of people at the first national Black Lives Matter conference on Sunday.

The footage alleges to show a white police officer spraying a group of black people in Cleveland, Ohio, who begin to scream and shout in anger.

It is reported that the large crowd had formed after a 14-year old boy was taken into police custody for having an open container at a bus stop.

News agencies report that the crowd attempted to lock arms around the police car where the boy was being held, before the officer in the video pepper sprayed them.

A statement released by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Police said that the boy was removed from the area for his own safety.

“At 4:40pm today, July 26, Transit Police officers on routine patrol peacefully removed an intoxicated 14-year old male from a bus. Police said the juvenile was intoxicated to the point where he was unable to care for himself.

“Within minutes, a large crowd had gathered. For the safety of the juvenile, Transit Police moved him from the open shelter area into a police cruiser.

“The crowd then surrounded the car, and attempted to remove the juvenile from the car. By this time, several other law enforcement agencies had also responded.

“The crowd kept the police car from leaving the area. A Transit Police officer used a general burst of pepper spray in an attempt to push back the crowd, to no avail."

Police later released the boy into the care of his mother.

The conference, entitled the National Convening for the Movement of Black Lives, ran from Friday to Sunday.

Thousands of activists from around the United States met in a series of workshops to discuss how to hold officials accountable for the police brutality that has led to the deaths of a number of black people in recent times.

Online Editors