Cops Detain 8-Year-Old Boy Accused Of Stealing A Bag Of Chips [Watch]

Police officers in Syracuse, New York, were widely condemned for a video circulating on the internet showing cops restraining an 8-year-old child for allegedly stealing a bag of Doritos from a store.

The police department released a statement Tuesday that said they will be conducting an internal review of the incident.

The 1-minute clip, which racked up 5.7 million views on Twitter, showed a witness confronting the police as they held the crying child with both of his arms behind him and made him sit inside a police car, according to USA TODAY.

Kenneth Jackson, the man who filmed the Sunday incident, spoke to NBC15 Madison about why he felt the need to capture the moment.

“I felt his terror and decided to intervene,” he told the outlet.

“There’s a way that the police need to interact with kids, and what they did that day was completely unacceptable,” he added.

Anthony Weah, the father of the boy in the video, said he was running an errand Sunday when he received a call saying cops were at his house with his three children, accused of stealing chips.

Weah said he arrived home to find the cops being friendly and saying they didn’t press charges. However, the father later saw the now-viral video and was shocked to see his son being detained.

“Why would the police treat that child like that?” the father told syracuse.com. “Over a $3 bag of chips.”

Weah admitted that his son’s actions were wrong. However, he believes the officers could have handled the situation differently. The parent is considering filing a complaint against the police.

The Syracuse Police Department released a statement that said the child was never placed in handcuffs at any point during the incident.

"As a mother, that was a heart-wrenching video to witness," Gov. Kathy Hochul commented on the incident during an unrelated event, according to CBS News. “A child weeping, being pulled by the police officers, put in the back of a police car, over a bag of potato chips, at least that's what the evidence says right now. I know that the mayor is working closely with the police department to get to the bottom of everything, but also make sure we do protect our children, that they're handled in a different way when it comes to encounters with law enforcement."

Mayor Ben Walsh said one of the officers in the video knew the boy prior to the incident.

“When the online video was first shared with me on Monday, I was concerned," Walsh added, as reported by USA TODAY. "What occurred demonstrates the continuing need for the City to provide support to our children and families and to invest in alternative response options to assist our officers."