Five of the seven immigrants accused of assaulting two New York City Police Department officers in Times Square have been offered plea deals.
Ulises Bohórquez, Yohenry Brito, Edgarlis Vegas, Darwin Andrés Gómez-Izquiel, Wilson Juárez, Yorman Reverón and Kelvin Servita Arocha appeared on Tuesday in the Supreme Criminal Court of New York before Judge Laura Wood.
The Venezuelan immigrants were charged with second-degree assault and obstruction of a government administrator following the Jan. 27 attack that was caught on video and all pleaded not guilty.
The incident broke out when two officers attempted to disperse a group in front of 220 West 42nd Street. Lieutenant Ben Kurian and Officer Zunxu Tian are said to have suffered lacerations, bruises and significant shoulder pain.
Judge Wood charged Brito (pictured), who was previously described as the “most culpable” of the defendants, for having been rearrested on petit larceny charges while on bail.
Edgarlis Vegas, of Brooklyn, was seen on surveillance footage wearing a burgundy jacket and kicking Kurian, prosecutors say.
Judge Wood accused Brito, who was previously described as the “most guilty” of the defendants, for having been rearrested on petit larceny charges while out on bail and warned that he “would not see the light of day” if he walked recklessly.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has offered plea deals to Bohórquez, Brito and Gómez-Izquiel to serve one year in prison in exchange for pleading guilty to second-degree assault.
Arocha and Juárez have been presented with an agreement in which they will serve six months in prison for pleading guilty to obstructing a government administration.
But Vegas and Reverón have not yet been offered offers at this time.
Defense attorneys have not accepted the offers and Judge Wood ordered them to return to court on June 18 where a trial date will be set if a deal is not reached.
Juárez (pictured) was offered a deal to serve six months in prison for pleading guilty to obstructing a government administration.
Judge Wood attacked Brito during the hearing and threatened to jail him if he made another mistake while out on bail.
“I am furious that Mr. Brito was arrested again and charged with petit larceny while he was on this case,” she said.
‘I’m very tempted right now to put you in jail. I’m telling you right now, if I find out that he has been arrested again for any reason between now and this case being over, I will order a warrant and set bail so high that he won’t be able to get out.
‘If you jaywalk, if you jump a turnstile, if you do anything and I have to issue a warrant, you won’t see the light of day until this case is over.
—Am I expressing myself perfectly clearly?
Brito responded “Yes” after a Spanish interpreter translated the judge’s harsh words for him.
Prosecutor Kotin previously said Brito was seen on video refusing a police officer’s order to leave the sidewalk, sparking the fight.
He was initially sent to Rikers Island, but was released after a church in Brooklyn was able to post his $15,000 bail.
Kelvin Arocha (pictured) is charged with two counts of second-degree assault and one count of second-degree obstruction of governmental administration.
Kotin told the court that Vegas was seen on surveillance footage wearing a burgundy jacket and kicking Kurian.
The prosecutor claimed she changed her story about the events several times, saying: “She said she was trying to move other members of the group and fell backwards.”
‘However, she changed her story again. She was kicking another member of the group and it is possible that she accidentally kicked the officer.
He added that Vegas told authorities that he moved to the United States from Venezuela about three months ago and had only been at his permanent residence for a short period.
Authorities were called to disperse a “disorderly group” in front of 220 West 42 Street when suspect Brito, 24, “confronted officers” and they attempted to arrest him, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.
“As Kurian holds Brito against the wall, groups of people can be heard shouting in Spanish at the officer,” he added.
“That’s when Brito tried to escape from Kurian and with the help of officer Zunxu Tian, the police officers grabbed the migrant’s clothes while trying to restrain him.”
The videos show the two officers and Brito falling to the ground and during the fight, other suspects interfered by pulling, grabbing and kicking the officers.
As Brito tries to slip away, the officers grab his shirt, which he eventually takes off.
“Go arrest those guys,” Kurian said as the crowd fled.
Ulises Bohórquez was one of three who were presented with a deal to serve one year in prison in exchange for pleading guilty to second-degree assault.
The case quickly attracted international attention. It took days for police to charge suspects in the case. Several were released on bail shortly after the attack and some fled the area.
Brito, Gomes, Reverón and Arocha are charged with two counts of second-degree assault and one count of second-degree obstruction of government administration.
Police say neither Juárez nor Arocha hit the officers, but that Arocha kicked a police radio as Juárez watched from a distance before giving his jacket to Brito.
Gomez is accused of grabbing one officer and kicking the other while Reverón allegedly grabbed, pulled and threw the two officers to the ground.
Juárez is believed to have watched the fight from a distance without participating.
He has been charged with tampering with physical evidence because he allegedly exchanged his jacket with a man who fled from police after the confrontation, prosecutors said.
