Three police officers and four municipal employees were suspended on Thursday for allegedly dumping a dead man in the back of a garbage van in Balrampur district of Uttar Pradesh, News18 reported. An ambulance present at the spot had reportedly refused to carry the man out of the fear that he may have died of the coronavirus.

The arrests were made after multiple video clips of the incident were widely circulated on social media, according to NDTV.

The man, identified as Mohd Anwar was a resident of Sarzora village in the district. He had gone to a local government office when he collapsed and died near the gates. A clip reportedly showed him lying unconscious on the road with a water bottle next to him.

In another video shot on a mobile phone, Anwar is seen being picked up by three municipal workers, who bundled him into a garbage van, while three police officers stood by and watched. A third video also showed an ambulance at a distance but the workers reportedly refused to take the body.

Balrampur Superintendent of Police Dev Ranjan Verma described the incident as “inhuman” and said that a team from the municipal corporation along with the police was sent to the spot as soon as the news of the death was received.

“The body of the deceased was put inside a garbage van, this is not acceptable,” he told News18. “Policemen and Nagar Palika employees on the spot did not even wear personal protection equipment kits, given the fact that the deceased could be a [suspected] coronavirus [patient].” Verma said that one sub-inspector and two constables were suspended with immediate effect.

Meanwhile the District Magistrate of Balrampur, Krishna Karunesh, ordered an inquiry into the incident, according to the Hindustan Times. “A probe was ordered and those found guilty have been suspended,” he said.