‘Beating him to death for a chicken’: Local residents horrified after videos shows cop pummeling homeless man in grocery store

Video taken inside a Publix supermarket in Miami, Florida, shows the arrest of a homeless man who was accused of stealing, but many say the officer used excessive force against the man, 7News Miami reports.

On April 16, the man allegedly took some chicken from the store and proceeded to eat it outside before he was confronted by the officer. The confrontation led to the police officer taking the man to the floor and striking him repeatedly in the head area.

"Oh, my goodness. That was just– he was just hitting that man in his head," a woman told News7 after watching the video. "I feel like as a society, we forget that we are human. He is doing something wrong, I guess immoral, but the aggression and the force that was used, things could've went differently."

The man, 58-year-old Willie Barber was arrested for petty theft, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest without violence.

"It looks like he's beating him to death for a chicken," a man told News7 after watching the video. "I would say [it's excessive]. I would hate to be the damn chicken or the man."

According to News7, the officer has been relieved of duty while an investigation is conducted.

Watch a report on the story from WPLG Local 10 below: