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by CBS 2HD's Carolyn Costello
NEW YORK (CBS) ― A grand jury has reportedly decided to indict the officers accused of sexually assaulting a man during a subway station arrest.

Michael Mineo was admitted to two local hospitals with bleeding and intense pain after several police officers allegedly sexually assaulted him at the Prospect Park subway station back in October.

The 24-year-old tattoo artist from Brooklyn said he was surrounded by a group of cops, one of whom held him down while another used a police baton or a radio antenna to sodomize him. The attack came, Mineo said, when the officers tried to bust him for smoking marijuana.

"I was violated," Mineo said. "How do you think I'm supposed to feel?"

Rev. Al Sharpton spoke with CBS 2HD's Carolyn Costello in the West Village. "I think the real hero in this is the policeman that came forward and apparently told what he saw, which I think is something that all New Yorkers and all Americans can be proud of," he said.

"He is a policeman that did his job. And he says I'm going to tell the truth whether it's against other officers or anyone else. And I think that we would not be at this point had he not stepped forward and really validated what Michael Mineo had told those of us that stood with him in the beginning of this," Sharpton said.

Mineo testified before a grand jury in November. He claimed he was tackled by two cops near the token booth around 12:30 p.m. and that three other cops also appeared. Mineo's lawyers said while one officer held him down, the other pulled down his pants, and then, allegedly, shoved part of what was thought to be a walkie-talkie into his rectum.

Mineo told CBS 2HD he was grateful to a transit officer who also reportedly testified on his behalf after witnessing the alleged brutality.

The transit officer told the grand jury that he saw 25-year-old patrolman Richard Kern wielding a baton and placing it near Mineo's behind. Mineo said he was thankful the cop supported his brutality allegations. "I'm happy – I'm real happy that he came out and said what he said, because he must have felt bad," Mineo said. "I can't speak for him, but he probably has a heart."

"Clearly there was evidence here. Clearly there was something that led to what injuries sustained by Michael Mineo, that he is still recovering from. This young man was castigated on top of being violated. That is a threat to all of us," Shapton said.

"I'm happy. I'm real happy that he came out and said what he said, because he must have felt bad. I can't speak for him, but he probably has a heart," Mineo said on November 9.

"You must remember that at first Internal Affairs cleared these officers. They were still on desk duty when I visited Michael Mineo in the hospital, and I was accused of: why are you standing with this guy? The police have already checked this out. Anytime you now have a grand jury finding criminal behavior, and we'll see to what degree they find that criminal behavior, but they've already been cleared by the department, it speaks again to our saying there must be a separate mechanism that holds police to accountability. Police cannot police themselves. It is not good for the public," Sharpton said.

In a statement back on Oct. 26, Deputy Police Commissioner Paul Browne said of Mineo: "His assertion that he was sodomized is not supported by independent civilian witnesses on the scene."

Later, on the phone, Browne told CBS 2 HD: "The witnesses said they heard him said he was being sodomized, and that he was being Tasered. They saw neither and we checked. Those officers don't carry Tasers."

Actually, one law enforcement source said Mineo may have yelled, "Don't Taser me!" as if he was afraid he might be Tasered. A friend immediately took Mineo to Brookdale Hospital. Someone read the medical report to CBS 2 HD. It said the diagnosis is anal assault. The hospital called the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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