The Chicago Police Department has opened an internal investigation into an off-duty sergeant after viral video footage captured him aggressively threatening a group of teenagers and apparently striking a phone from a young girl’s hand.

The video, originally uploaded to the Clearing/Garfield Ridge Community Page on Facebook, shows the heated exchange between the officer and the youngsters holding skateboards.

The incident began when the sergeant confronted the group following a nearby dispute. He can be heard asking them how old they are. After one boy answers he is 16 years old, the officer lashes out at him.

“You’re 16, picking on little 14-year-olds,” he says.

One kid can be heard trying to explain that he and his friends had been involved in an altercation with a separate group and were waiting peacefully for uniformed officers to arrive if called.

“We were there. We were doing our thing, and they were shouting at us,” the teen says before being cut off by the sergeant.

The situation quickly escalated as the off-duty officer began using profane language. He eventually threatened them with physical violence. 

He kept asking one of the teens to call his parents so he could beat them up too. While the officer’s name was not initially revealed, his acquaintance can be heard in the background, referring to him as “Jeremy.” He was later identified as Sgt. Jeremy Sikorski.

“I’ll knock your f*cking a** out,” Sikorski told one of the teen boys. “Get your f*cking parents over here. I’ll beat the f*ck out of them, and I’ll beat the f*ck out of you.”

“I’ll knock your f*cking dad out, and I’ll knock your a** out after,” Sikorski continued as his acquaintance pleaded with him to leave the scene.

Sikorski was confronted by an adult, who appeared to be one of the teen’s parents. Instead of calming down, Sikorski assaulted the father before lashing out at the little Hispanic girl who was recording the confrontation. It is unclear if he struck her or knocked her phone to the ground.

The sudden attack left the girl startled as she started to sob. “It f*cking hurts,” she said.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Police Department stripped Sgt. Sikorski of his police powers and reassigned him to the alternate response section. The Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) confirmed it has launched a parallel independent probe into the incident.

Records from the city’s Office of Inspector General reveal an extensive disciplinary history, including 22 previous misconduct allegations during his career, two of which were sustained. Despite this, he reportedly made around $142K last year. 

The video has sparked widespread outrage online, with social media users condemning the sergeant’s conduct and calling for disciplinary action against him.

“When you have arms like that and punch a person in the head, it’s aggravated battery at the least! If he’s a cop, it’s attempted murder. Chicago Police S*ck,” one X user commented.

Another added, “Who do you call for help when the cops are the ones committing crimes against the public? Police reform is long overdue in this country. Burn it down and build it back the right way.”

“Why do most all Police look like convincts? What happened to looking respectable, setting an example for the community? Most Police work is for thugs now a days, not all, but so many,” read a third comment.

A separate viewer added, “I wish I could say that I am surprised. This is why voting in the midterms on November 3rd is SO IMPORTANT. Keep in mind Trump and his cronies are going to do everything possible to stop people from voting. Take a friend or two with you 2 the polls.”

Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently confirm the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public video record.