Anaheim police release bodycam video after naked man dies while in their custody

Anaheim police released new bodycam video after a Mexican citizen died while in their custody.

The incident happened in June. Officers responded to the 800 block of N. Harbor Blvd. to calls of a man who was naked and acting strange. The video shows officers interacting with the man who was found nude sitting down outside a building.

Anaheim police said they arrested him for public nudity and being under the influence of drugs. They said that 26-year-old Gustavo Martinez was taken to the Anaheim Police Department Detention Facility for booking and processing, but officers were informed by jail staff that Martinez needed to be medically cleared before being booked.

Police said Martinez started experiencing medical distress while on the way to the hospital. The video shows Martinez conscious and breathing but slumped over in the back seat of the patrol car. Officers even pulled over at one point and gave him Narcan.

He was taken to the hospital, where he died the next morning.

Investigators said firefighters also had a run-in with the same man earlier in the day. At that time, Martinez was apparently naked and told firefighters he was performing a satanic ritual. They transported him to the hospital for a psychiatric evaluation but was later released after hospital staff determined he was showing normal and acceptable behavior.

The cause of death is still pending, but police said Martinez tested positive for amphetamines. According to authorities, while Martinez was not in police custody at the time of his death, the fact that he was previously in police custody qualifies this incident as a custodial death.