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Body cam video shows traffic stop where officers exposed to suspected narcotic

Posted at 9:46 PM, Oct 30, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-30 21:46:43-04

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Body camera footage has been released after several Grand Rapids Police officers were exposed to an unknown, suspected narcotic during a traffic stop last month.

Around 8 p.m. on Sept. 29, police pulled over a vehicle near Burton and Kalamazoo Avenue. During the stop, officers noticed the man in the passenger seat, 32-year-old Talbert McCuller, digging in his pockets.

As police tried to pull him from the car, a bag of an unknown substance was ripped open. Multiple officers and EMT's responded to the scene.

In body camera footage, you can hear the officers nervous about the substance being fentanyl or carfentanil, a dangerous and potentially deadly substance even with minimal contact.

Officers who were exposed to the substance tell EMT's they're starting to feel sick. ​

The four officers involved were cleared by hospital staff after being checked out, along with McCuller.  He is charged with resisting and obstructing police and delivery/manufacture of a narcotic.

Lab testing is still pending to determine exactly what the powder was.