Moment Miami police officer tackles man to stop him from filming colleagues as they beat and kicked handcuffed black suspect accused of parking his scooter illegally
- Five Miami Beach police officers have been charged with misdemeanor battery for use of force after a rough arrest last week
- Officers are accused of repeatedly kicking a handcuffed suspect and slamming his head into the ground
- They are also accused of tackling and punching a bystander who attempted to record the incident
- The officers were relieved of their duties and surrendered to officials on Monday
Disturbing video captured the moment a Miami Beach police officer tackled man to stop him from filming colleagues violently arrested a handcuffed black suspect.
Surveillance footage released Monday shows a suspect, 24-year-old Dalonta Crudup, being kicked repeatedly and having his head slammed into the ground.
It also shows officers tackle and punch a bystander who was filming the incident from several feet away.
Five officers involved in the incident have been charged with assault: Sgt. Jose Perez, and officers Kevin Perez, Robert Sabater, Steven Serrano and David Rivas.
They have been relieved of duty while an internal investigation is underway, WPLG reported.
Surveillance footage shows officers repeatedly kicking Dalonta Crudup, 24, and slamming his head into the ground during an arrest last week, although he was already handcuffed
Officers said they were trying to stop Crudup for illegally parking when he struck an officer with his motor scooter while attempting to flee the scene.
Police caught up with Crudup at the Royal Palm Hotel in South Beach where they arrested him and reportedly turned physical.
Sgt. Jose Perez is accused of kicking the suspect, who was handcuffed, three times and slamming his head into the ground.
Officer Kevin Perez allegedly kicked Crudup at least four times.
‘I got beat up, I got stitches, went to the hospital,’ Crudup told the TV station.
Crudup was charged with aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, fleeing and eluding police, aggravated assault on a police officer and resisting arrest with violence, the Miami Herald reported.
Meanwhile, video shows Officer Sabater charging at Khalid Vaughn, 28, who was recording the altercation from about 12 feet away, and tackling him to the ground. The officer is also accused of punching the bystander repeatedly.
Vaughan was then cornered and struck multiple times by both officers Rivas and Serrano.
‘I started recording it. They already got him in handcuffs. They beat him, turned around, charged me down, beat me … punched me, elbowed me in the face,’ Vaughn said. ‘I literally got jumped by officers.’
The bystander was arrested for impeding, provoking and harassing officers.
Sharif Cobb, 27, who began recording the incident alongside Vaughn, told WPLG that Vaughn backed up when he was asked and that ‘the cops came out of nowhere for no reason’.
The news outlet said Cobb was also arrested but did not indicated under what charges.
Crudup (inset) says he was ‘beat up, got stitches, went to the hospital’ after the alterCATION
The video shows an officer charge at bystander Khalid Vaughn, who was recording the altercation from about 12 feet away, and tackle him to the ground
All five officers involved in the incident have been relieved from duty and face battery charges
Miami Beach Police Chief Richard Clements, who reviewed the surveillance footage last week, has initiated an internal investigation into the incident. He also requested the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office to conduct a further review.
‘I have serious concerns about the force utilized after Mr. Crudup was in custody, including the level of force utilized in the subsequent arrest of Mr. Vaughn,’ Clements said. ‘This is not indicative of the hard-working men and women of the Miami Beach Police Department and will not be tolerated.’
Clements stated that the department ‘would learn from this incident and do better in the future’.
All five officers have been charged with misdemeanor battery for use of force. Officials say they turned themselves in at the Miami Beach Police department on Monday morning.
At this time, it remains unclear if the charges filed against Crudup, Vaughan and Cobb remain. DailyMail.com inquired about the charges, however Miami Beach police did not immediately respond to our request for comment.
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