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 John McMahon, sheriff of San Bernardino County, said at a news
conference on Friday he was "disturbed and troubled" by what he saw
in the footage, shot from a KNBC-TV news helipcopter on Thursday
near the town of Apple Valley, east of Los Angeles.
"It appears to be excessive to me based on what I saw in the video,"
he said of the force used in restraining the suspect, Francis Pusok,
30, after the man had already been shot by a Taser stun gun and was
splayed face down on the ground.
The FBI said it had opened an investigation into the incident and
the results would be referred to federal prosecutors, the San
Bernardino Sun newspaper reported.
The footage surfaced on Thursday just two days after a video emerged
of a South Carolina policeman fatally shooting a man as he ran away
after being stopped for a broken tail light.
 Ten officers involved in the beating of Pusok have been placed on
paid administrative leave pending a special investigation of the
incident, the sheriff said.
McMahon said Pusok was treated at a local hospital for abrasions and
bruises, then jailed on several criminal charges, including felony
evasion and possession of stolen property.
Pusok initially drove off in a car when officers arrived at a
residence to serve a search warrant as part of an identity-theft
investigation, McMahon told reporters.
He ditched the car, ran a short distance on foot and stole a horse
before deputies in off-road vehicles and helicopters closed in on
him in the rugged, hilly terrain outside the town.
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The video shows Pusok riding the horse, falling off, scrambling to
his feet, then throwing himself to the ground with his arms
outstretched as two deputies run up with Tasers drawn.
The two deputies are seen pouncing on Pusok, taking turns repeatedly
punching and stomping on him while several more officers join in,
delivering repeated blows and kicks in a beating that goes on for at
least two minutes.
McMahon said the Taser apparently was ineffective against Pusok
because of his loose clothing.
Two deputies were treated for minor injuries and released, the
sheriff said.
(Additional reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by
Louise Ireland)
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