WATCH: NYPD officer slams a man to the ground for not socially distancing

NYPD officer Francisco Garcia, was in plainclothes, a badge not visible, and not wearing a protective face covering when he began slapping and punching 33-year-old Donni Wright on a crosswalk in Manhattan's East Village neighborhood.

It was recorded via a bystander's cell phone.

“What you flexing for? Don’t flex,” Garcia told Wright. He can then be seen wrapping his arms around Wright and wrestling him to the ground, slapping and punching him in the process.

Garcia then took Wright’s arm and pulled him from the crosswalk where he landed back onto the sidewalk and pushed him onto his stomach. All of this over a failure to be socially distanced enough for the officer's liking.

The video showed another officer stepping in to help handcuff Wright.

Garcia kneeled on Wright’s neck to keep him down and began jawing and cursing at bystanders.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio took to Twitter to address the issue: “Saw the video from the Lower East Side and was really disturbed by it. The officer involved has been placed on modified duty and an investigation has begun. The behavior I saw in that video is simply not acceptable.”

Garcia has since been stripped of his gun and badge and put on desk duty while he waits for an internal investigation.

Many on social media have been suggesting that Garcia be fired immediately, while others have placed blame on de Blasio for failing to address the issues within his own city.

Police spokeswoman Sgt. Mary Frances O’Donnell defended Garcia, saying that Wright “took a fighting stance against the officer” after he was ordered to leave, and was therefore arrested on charges of assault on a police officer and resisting arrest.

Wright’s arrest and that of two other individuals minutes before on the same block, across from a public housing complex, raise questions about the use of force by the police department, the responsibility in enforcing social distancing measures and inconsistency in how they are applied. Additionally, photos of officers wearing masks would indicate that they may not know how to properly do so.

While the police department in New York City assigned 1,000 officers to social distancing patrols over the weekend, there is little information on how many of those officers were wearing protective gear, and if those officers were observing social distancing protocols themselves. On Saturday, the NYPD issued 51 summonses, including 43 in city parks.