A video of French footballer Tiemoue Bakayoko, who is on loan at AC Milan from Premier League giants Chelsea, being stopped by police at gunpoint during a search operation has surfaced online. The incident, which took place on July 3, was a case of mistaken identity.
The video opens with a police officer running a search on the footballer, who is leaning against a car. Few seconds later, another policeman, who was checking Tiemoue Bakayoko's vehicle, walks up to his teammate and reveals the player's identity. The expression on the officer's face explains the rest.
AC Milan's spokesperson told BBC that the moment the officers came to know about Bakayoko's identity, they “apologised to him”.
"The player was stopped but as soon as the police verified that he had nothing to do with what happened, they apologised and let him go," the spokesperson was quoted as saying.
The text attached to the footage, which was shot from inside a car, read, "Shocking footage of Milan's Bakayoko held at gunpoint by police cause taken for someone else. See here when one of the cops goes to tell his colleague searching Tiemoue Bakayoko that it's not the suspect but a Milan player, and the cop says “who?”
The search operation was on as the police were looking for suspects involved in a shooting that took place in the area earlier that day, the report added.
In an official statement, the Milan Police Headquarters said, “The search, happened on July 3, was due to a gun shooting that happened in the area in previous hours. And, the two suspected were two men in an SUV fitting the description, one of the two was black and with a green shirt. That's why the gunpoint.”
Tiemoue Bakayoko, last summer, joined AC Milan on a two-year loan deal. This is his second loan spell in the Italian League. Previously, he was on a loan deal with Rossoneri. He had made 18 appearances for the Serie A club.
