COP SWALLOWS TEEN BOY
PITTSBURGH -- Area residents have expressed concern the actions of a police officer who reportedly swallowed a teenaged boy whole.
Officer Lee Smith of the Pittsburgh city police allegedly ingested Tim Williams, 16, after discovering the boy vandalizing a building.
Area residents criticized this action as an improper use of force. "I don't think I'd feel safe, knowing that a police officer might suddenly eat me alive," said an anonymous neighbor of the victim.
Smith defended his actions as proper, however. "The area youth need to learn the proper respect for the law," he said. "I felt that swallowing this delinquent would send the proper message to the young people of the city that their actions have consequences." Smith said that he would not rule out the possibility of swallowing others caught in similar crimes.
According to reports, Smith discovered Williams spraypainting the back wall of Clancy's Dairy in an alley. When Williams spoke disrespectfully to Smith, the officer pinned the boy to the ground, tore the clothes from the boy, and then proceeded to swallow the struggling boy alive. After writing up a report on the incident, Williams reportedly took leave time for the rest of his shift and returned to his home to rest while digesting the boy.
"It was awful," said a friend of Williams who witnessed the incident. "One minute my friend is standing there arguing, and the next minute there's just this big bulge in the cop's stomach."
A police department spokesperson said the matter was currently under investigation.