Police officers in Tennessee, USA, ignored a drowning man’s repeated cries of help and ended up calling him a “dumb ass” rather than trying to save him.

The discovery was made following a review of a police bodycam.

24-year-old Johnny Baldwin reportedly fell into the Tims Ford Boiling Fork Creek in Winchester as he fled on foot after police officers tried to pull him over for a minor traffic violation last Thursday.

The police were heard teasing Baldwin as he called out for help 3 times as he drowned.

An officer could be heard saying:

Well then, swim. Your dumb ass jumped in the river.

When one of the 4 police officers volunteered to follow him into the water, a police officer stopped him.

The sergeant said:

No, don’t go in there with him, he’s going to pull you down.

Winchester Police Chief Richard Lewis called the incident as an “extremely sad situation”.

ABC News was in touch with Chief Lewis, and the Chief said that his police department had caught absolute hell after releasing the bodycam footage was released to the public.

He also insisted that the police officers made the right decision, considering the fact that it was dark and they did not know how deep the water was.

The police officers were not trained in water rescues.

The rescue squad and dive team were en route before Baldwin drowned, said the police.

Chief Lewis said:

If my officer got in there and got tied up with him [and got pulled under], it’s just a bad situation.

The family of Baldwin, the victim of the incident, is calling for the police officers to be fired and charged.

Brian Kirk, a close friend of the Baldwin family, said:

He was an innocent 24-year-old man, drowned begging for help three times and the police sat there and laughed and made jokes about it.

2 Decherd Police Officers and 2 Police Officers from Winchester were involved in the incident.

The chief of the Decherd Police Department did not release a statement about the incident.