DOVER — Police arresting a suspect early Sunday morning — on charges of assault, violating court orders and criminal mischief — were seen on video circulated on social media restraining the suspect and punching him in the face while he was pinned to the ground.

The suspect, Cyprian Luke, 19, of Morristown, was being held at the Morris County Correctional Facility on Sunday pending a court appearance Monday.

The Morris County Prosecutor's office said late Sunday it is investigating the incident under the supervision of the New Jersey Attorney General's Office "as required under their directive."

Attorney General Office spokesperson Sharon Lauchaire said "As part of the Attorney General’s focus on building community trust, the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability will be investigating this incident. Anyone with additional information should contact the OPIA hotline at: 1-844-OPIA-TIP."

About 50 people, including friends and members of Luke's family, gathered Sunday evening to organize a protest in the parking lot of a Krauszer's convenience store located across North Warren Street from the Dover Police Department.

About half a dozen officers stood outside their department entrance and did not interact with protesters, who waved signs and chanted "No justice, no peace, no racist police."

They also called for the dismissal of one officer by name who some protesters claim threw the punches.

Before the scene in the video that involved the officers restraining Luke, police were seen on video dragging the unwilling suspect toward a patrol car while enduring an expletive-laden rant from those observing the arrest. Police did not appear to react in a physical manner toward those cursing them or the person recording the video.

Marcus Robinson of Morristown said he was with Luke and another friend when he stopped briefly in the Krauszer's store off North Warren Street at 2:15 a.m. When Robinson exited the store, he said, he saw the police confronting Luke outside the Mill Pond Towers apartments. Robinson, who captured the encounter in a cellphone video, also said police used a chemical spray to subdue Luke.

"First thing I see is they sprayed him with mace," Robinson said. "They were all over him, he couldn't move his arms, but then they were saying 'stop resisting' at the same time. And then they started punching him. I thought bro was going to die."

Robinson said they were in town to get tattoos and were sober at the time.

Police Safety Director Daniel Degroot said later Sunday that "the investigation is commencing immediately and is a priority due to the serious nature of the incident."

Shanell Harris of Boonton, who said she was Luke's wife, took a call from Luke from prison as the protest continued and relayed answers to questions from the media.

"He said his head hurts, he has migraines on and off," she said, holding her toddler daughter, Athena.

Harris and others at the protest confirmed reports that when first confronted, Luke gave the false name of "Anthony" to police.

"But how would they know?" Harris said. "They didn't know him. He's from Morristown. How would they know?"

Robinson said he also spoke to Luke Sunday from the jail.

"He's hurting bad," he said.

Luke's aunt, Rachelle Cruz, was among the protesters.

"He's a great kid, he gets in trouble here and there like a normal teenager, but he's not a violent person," said Cruz, a Dover resident. "He lives in the Hollow, which is the toughest area to live in Morristown, and you kind-of have to be a little tougher. He doesn't like it, but he has to do what he's got to do to survive sometimes. But he's a great kid. The people here are doing it out of love for him."

Luke's grandmother, Aura Heredia, also came to the protest, where she teared up after someone showed her the video for the first time.

"It's too much," she said, her voice breaking.

Karol Ruiz, an attorney and president of the Morristown-based nonprofit Wind of the Spirit immigrant resource center, organized the protesters.

"I certainly don't understand police procedure, I only understand the difference between a peaceful arrest and a violent arrest," She said. "That video showed excessive force to me. That is a concerning pattern we are seeing across the country."

Dover Alderwoman Carolyn Blackman called for "restraint" and for "an independent authority to conduct a swift, full and fair investigation into this tragic incident."

"When videos such as these surface, emotions can run high, especially in the African-American and Latino communities, as we have had to endure more than our fair share of mistreatment on every level," Blackman said. "I praise the professionalism of our dedicated and hard-working police officers as they deal with challenging situations every day. However, Dover is not immune to the potential for the use of excessive force. Brutality by law enforcement against the very people they are duty-bound to protect and serve is unacceptable "

Community activists say protests are being planned for coming days, but none had been planned for Monday.

Luke was scheduled to make his first appearance in court at 1:30 p.m. Monday.

Troubled history:Denville principal accused of attempted sex abuse has brother who sexually assaulted nephew

Juvenile exploitation:Police, FBI target sex trafficking, bust 6 at Hanover hotel

William Westhoven: 973-917-9242; wwesthoven@Dailyrecord.com