Teen Tased In Face By NYPD, Family Says, Mayor Promises Action

NEW YORK CITY — A family says their teenager was tasered in the face by a police officer who did not notify them of the boy's arrest because "he is so tall I thought he was an adult when I took him down."

The accusations have caught the attention of Mayor Bill de Blasio, who said in a tweet Wednesday night he had spoken to 16-year-old Jahmel Leach and his family and asked the NYPD to investigate.

"I’m really troubled by what they told me," de Blasio wrote. "We’re going to get them answers."

De Blasio shared details of the story from Yahmil Miller, Jahmel's cousin, who issued a statement and published photographs of his bloodied young cousin.

Jahmel could lose his teeth after an officer shot him in the head, leg and shoulder in The Bronx on June 1, as police brutality protests and looting broke out across the city, Miller said.

"JAHMEL LEACH was not involved in acts of violence," Miller's statement reads. "His family is traumatized by this encounter."

A police source told the New York Post Leach was taken into custody for allegedly trying to set a fire.

Miller adds to his accusations that police never told Jahmel's family he was in custody, even though he is a minor, later apologizing to his mother and blaming the teen's height for their error.