On duty cop beats suspected burglar

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - The FBI has launched an investigation into a officer who gave a suspected burglar a beating.

This incident is not the first strike against the officer who was on the job when the burglary was at his house.

Even when another cop intervened to stop the beating, Officer John Lytle did not stop. He pulled the suspect back out of a cop car and continued to beat on the 18-year-old.

Officer John Lytle was on duty for Belen PD when he heard the call out in March. His home was being burglarized. He responded and when he saw a car matching the suspect's in the area he pulled it over.

That’s when witnesses say he lost it; punching and kneeing the teen in the face and threatening to kill him.

When another officer arrived he put the teen in the back of his squad car and tried to figure out just what was going on. Moments later the other officer saw Lytle pull the suspect out of the cop car, push him to the ground and kick him.

The Belen Police Chief immediately took action. He couldn't say much citing personnel issues, but did say an investigation into Lytle's actions was handled quickly and that Lytle was fired.

Turns out this was not the first time Lytle has been in trouble. He was fired in 2007 from State Police after being charged with DWI. Cops say they found a drunk Lytle behind the wheel but he claimed he was just drinking because he was an undercover cop working a drug investigation and was doing what he needed to play the part.

A jury decided there wasn't any evidence that he was driving that night and acquitted him.

Before coming to State Police he worked as a Dona Ana County Deputy where he was the target of a federal lawsuit after he was accused of beating a deaf and mute man and then covering it up.

The suspect Lytle beat up was charged with the burglary; his case is still pending.

The state stripped Lytle of his license to be a cop.