This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Police have defended an officer caught on camera apparently slapping a teenage girl and pulling her hair as she resisted arrest.

The altercation was filmed by a passerby in the Lancashire town of Accrington on Monday and has been viewed more than 2 million times after being posted on Facebook.

Lancashire police acknowledged that the restraint techniques used in the arrest “may look shocking to untrained onlookers” and said they were investigating. The force said two officers had to go to hospital after the incident. One female officer suffered bite marks and a male officer sustained cuts to his head, a spokesman said.

The force said in a statement: “We understand this footage may appear concerning. However, officers are trained to use restraint techniques which may look shocking to untrained onlookers. A full investigation into the circumstances surrounding this incident will take place in due course.”

The chief constable of Lancashire, Andy Rhodes, said the officers were called to a large fight and were met by a “very hostile situation”. The officer in question used an open-hand strike against the girl when she tried to grab his stun gun and radio.

“It is very easy to judge from the sidelines without the full facts when you’ve never been in a similar situation yourself,” he said in a statement released on Twitter.

“[Officers] do not come to work to be assaulted and they have my full support.

“Perhaps those filming the incident may have better used their time helping the officers to calm the situation.”

LancsPolice (@LancsPolice) Here's the response from our Chief Constable, Andy Rhodes, following an incident which happened in Accrington town centre yesterday, Monday, 20 August. pic.twitter.com/CeztLKZ8zy

A 14-year-old girl and a 52-year-old woman were arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer. The girl has since been referred to the youth offending team and the woman remains in custody.