Police: Syracuse boy, 8, was never handcuffed for stealing chips

[anvplayer video=”5103947″ station=”998132″]

Syracuse police are speaking out about a viral video of police interacting with an 8-year-old boy accused of stealing a bag of chips.

During a news conference Thursday morning, they shared body camera footage from the day.

Police say they knew the child before this happened. They clarified that the boy was never handcuffed and never arrested or taken to jail.

They added kids stealing for stores in that area of the city has been a problem for months.

They say the video captured by a citizen only gives a snippet of what went on that day.

Police also acknowledged during the news conference that there were some low points on the body camera footage that show things officers can work on.

Hear what police say happened after the viral video was shot by watching the story.