A Black fashion executive said he was unjustly stopped and searched in Beverly Hills, California by police while walking across a street in the city’s luxury fashion district.

According to CNN, Salehe Bembury, vice president of men’s footwear for Versace, said he was racially profiled by BHPD officers as he left the popular shopping spot that houses the Versace store.

From body camera footage released by the police department Friday, an officer is shown approaching Bembury, asking why he crossed a street while checking his phone.

Bembury responds that he was catching his bearings and admits that he jaywalked. When the officer asks for Bembury to present his ID, he also questions whether or not the fashion executive has any weapons on him.

“No, I don’t. I’m like super nervous because I was just going to my car,” the man said.

The officer then asks Bembury to put his hands behind his back, while he conducts a search of his person. The Versace executive agrees but says that he feels embarrassed.

"What's unfortunate is like, I literally designed the shoes that are in this bag," Bembury said in the video.

Moments later, the man asks if he is allowed to record the police on his phone. Despite an officer suggesting against it, Bembury records the encounter to make himself feel secure in a situation he said made him uncomfortable.

In an Instagram post of the recording, he says in the video, "I'm in Beverly Hills right now and I'm getting f***king searched for shopping at the store I work for and just being black."

View this post on Instagram

Fear.

A post shared by Salehe Bembury (@salehebembury) on

The police department argues that Bembury’s detainment was not racially motivated. Police said he was stopped for jaywalking near the intersection in which they stopped him.

"Beverly Hills Police conducted a pedestrian enforcement stop at Camden Drive and Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills after Mr. Salehe Bembury was observed committing a pedestrian violation," the police department said in a statement.

BHPD officials said "Mr. Bembury admitted to the pedestrian violation and told the officers he was looking at the GPS on his phone to determine where he was heading.”

Although the harrowing incident has caused public backlash, police leadership said they are committed to transparency evidenced by the release of the entire 3.5 minute-recording of his stop this week.

"Mr. Bembury, as confirmed in the full 3 ½ minute body camera video, was stopped due to a pedestrian violation. The department is committed to full transparency and released the full 3 ½ minute body camera video within 24 hours," Police Lt. Max Subin said.

Fashion mogul Donatella Versace shared Bembury's video on her Instagram and wrote that she supports Bembury in a situation that was “totally unacceptable.”

"I am appalled this happened to Salehe Bembury today," she wrote. "He has been a consultant at Versace for a long time and the behavior he experienced is totally unacceptable. He was stopped on the street solely for the color of his skin. Stay strong @salehebembury. Sending you love and support."

Civil rights Attorney Ben Crump also shared a video of Bembury’s encounter with police and questioned if police would have responded differently to the man if he were a white woman.

"Would they have treated a jogging white woman in Beverly Hills the same way?" Crump wrote.

Beverly Hills police stopped Salehe Bembury (VP at @Versace) for "jaywalking" aka #WalkingWhileBlack.
Would they have treated a jogging white woman in Beverly Hills the same way????? pic.twitter.com/v2cwBzYGhJ

According to CNN, Bembury was released with a warning, and no citation was issued.

Bembury’s foray into the fashion industry started in 2009 as a shoe designer for Payless. From there, he made a stop at Cole Haan before accepting his role at Versace in 2017, according to his personal website.

ben crumpBeverly-Hills-Police-DepartmentDonatella-VersaceFashion-DesignerVersace