SEE IT: Virginia cop charged with assault after tasing pinned-down man

A Fairfax County, Va., police officer was “relieved of his duties” late Saturday and arrested on assault charges after he tased an incoherent man as other officers were trying to coax him into an ambulance, then kneeled on his back to cuff him as the man writhed and yelled, “I can’t breathe.”

The incident happened on Friday, amid massive nationwide protests against police brutality and racism in the wake of the death of George Floyd, who died in police custody in Minneapolis on Memorial Day.

In Fairfax County, the white officer in question, Tyler Timberlake, is charged with three counts of assault and battery, reported WJLA-TV. He could face up to three years in jail.

In the video, which Fairfax County police showed at a Saturday press conference and posted on YouTube, the man, who is black, seems to be suffering from a medical issue. Officers can be heard trying to coax him into an ambulance, but he instead walks around in circles.

At one point an officer shoots him with the stun gun as the man is walking away. He falls, and the officer leans on his back with his knees, jams the stun gun into his shoulder, and holds it there, even though the man’s face is being ground into the asphalt. The man is yelling, and at one point says, “I can’t breathe.”

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

Body cam video shows Virginia cop use Taser on man who was already pinned down on the street. (Fairfax County Police Department)

Other officers join in and cuff him.

The footage was captured on an officer’s body camera, reported WJLA.

The man “is alive and resting at home with his family," Fairfax County Police Chief Edwin C. Roessler Jr. told reporters Saturday. Timberlake, with the department for eight years, was “relieved of duty,” Roessler said. Other officers have been removed from the job pending the results of criminal and administrative investigations, Roessler said.

“Our nation is righteously angry at the law enforcement profession, as am I,” Roessler said. “Many departments are not engaged with their communities. The Fairfax County Police Department is engaged with its communities, and we value transparency, accountability and, as evidenced by our civilian review panel, and our independent police auditor, those values are held to the standards of our community members, who developed these accountability systems.”

Timberlake had repeatedly “ignored the sanctity of human life,” Roessler said, adding of the victim, “I thank god he is alive and home with his family.”

Roessler expressed “disgust” at the officer’s behavior and vowed to obtain justice for the man and his family.

Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said Timberlake would be fully prosecuted.

“I can assure you that I am personally following this case closely to ensure a thorough prosecution and outcome, especially during these trying times,” he told the Associated Press.

“Together as a community, through our transparency and engagement, we shall heal our communities and hold everyone accountable,” Roessler said. “Now is the time for healing.”