Footage has surfaced of Victoria Police pinning down a mentally ill disability pensioner, hitting him with a baton, and spraying him with capsicum spray.

The incident, caught on CCTV, also saw the man sprayed with water from a high-pressure garden hose.

The incident is being investigated by the state’s anti-corruption agency IBAC.

“When [the footage] was first shown to me last week, I was very concerned by what the vision depicted,” said assistant commissioner of Victoria police, Luke Cornelius.

“The conduct displayed demanded examination and explanation. The members involved clearly needed to be called to account for their conduct.”

According to the ABC, police were called by the man’s carers.

The man said he thought he would die when being hosed in the face.

“He’s aiming for my nostrils and it’s going into my lungs — and that’s when I started choking from the water and from the hot mace going into my respiratory [system],” he said.

“I couldn’t breathe.”

Reports say the man is launching a civil case.

Mr Cornelius has confirmed the six police officers involved still work for Victoria police.

“Look, it’s not our practice to immediately stand members down upon receipt of a complaint,” he said.

“Each of them know that their conduct is the subject of significant scrutiny, including the publication of the CCTV footage that we’ve all seen.”