Police Reportedly Arrest Key Michael Brown Witness Dorian Johnson

Dorian Johnson, one of the key witnesses in the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo., was arrested last night along with two of his brothers, after police suspected that one of them was carrying a weapon.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the three were arrested after officers thought he saw a “bulge” underneath one brother’s clothes, and once he ordered a patdown, was allegedly grabbed by the second brother.

Johnson, who was with Brown after he robbed a store and was subsequently shot and killed by a police officer, was allegedly carrying a “cough medication mixed with what police believe to be an illegal narcotic on him” and tried to stop the police from arresting his brothers, one of whom had an arrest warrant out for him in connection to an armed robbery and armed criminal action in a nearby town. All three were charged with resisting arrest.

St. Louis police did not officially give out Johnson’s name in the arrest report, but a source confirmed that Johnson was involved in the arrest.

This isn’t the first time a witness to a high-profile, fatal police encounter was arrested on unrelated charges: Ramsey Orta, who filmed an NYPD officer choking Eric Garner, was indicted months later on gun charges. Orta pled not guilty, and believes that he was arrested in retaliation for the video.

[Image via screenshot]

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