Authorities are investigating after a California man said deputies beat him and yelled racist comments at him at a local jail.
Jacob Angelo Servin said in an Instagram post on Tuesday that deputies with the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office "held me down beat me, choked me, kicked me and tried to snap my neck, with their fists and batons one by one" after he was arrested on suspicion of being drunk in public.
Servin uploaded a picture of the aftermath to Instagram — his eyes nearly swollen shut, his face covered in dried blood, and his pants apparently stained with blood.
"They left me to die with my face disfigured a broken nose, lacerations in my face and head," he wrote on Instagram.
The post was also shared by a family member on Twitter, where it was retweeted thousands of times with a call for justice for Servin.
‼️My uncle Jacob was beaten half to death after being arrrested in Stockton,Ca for being drunk at a bar.3 officers took him to county and were yelling racist remarks then jumped him and left him for dead‼️ NO ONE DESERVES THIS WE WILL GET JUSTICE PLEASE SHARE & REPOST‼️
A statement from the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office on Wednesday said that Servin had refused to comply with deputies while he was being booked into the jail and that the 29-year-old had tried to grab one officer's equipment, kicked another deputy, grabbed a woman officer, and tried to bite another staff member at the jail.
"Correctional officers were forced to react to his aggressiveness in order to protect themselves and maintain the safety and security of others in the facility," the statement said.
The incident began Sunday when Servin was arrested on suspicion of being drunk in public near Basil's, a local bar in Stockton, said police officer Joe Silva.
Officers with the police department took Servin into custody, and he was transported to the county jail with no visible injuries at the time, Silva told BuzzFeed News.
Silva said Servin was compliant with officers' orders as he was taken into custody and to the local jail. He was then turned over to the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office, which oversees the jail.
In its statement, the sheriff's office said Servin was "non-compliant with officers during the initial phase of the booking process" and was taken to a temporary holding cell.
Servin wrote in his Instagram post that as deputies used force against him, he yelled for them to stop, and witnesses could hear them shouting racist comments. He was then taken to a hospital.
"The medical staff informed him of his potential injuries and he was uncooperative with them and refused medical treatment," the sheriff's office said.
Servin did not immediately respond to BuzzFeed News' requests for comment.
"I am barely able to walk on my own due to the amount of damage done to my whole body," he wrote.
His description of his treatment at the jail has sparked outrage. Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs said on Twitter that although the matter was not under his jurisdiction, he had spoken to Servin and his family.
Officials said they have launched an administrative review and an investigation of the incident.
"It's sad that we as a people have to fear for our safety from the ones that have sworn to protect and serve," Servin said.