Fanny pack links protester to two sucker-punch attacks on NYPD cops during protests of Eric Garner decision
WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE Watch the video of a protester punching an NYPD sergeant in the side of the head during a Dec. 4 demonstration at the Staten Island Ferry's Whitehall terminal. Cop sources say that a suspect arrested for socking a cop at a Union Square protest that day, Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick, was also charged with the ferry terminal assault because of the fanny pack he wore, sources said.
His fanny pack had the word “destitution” written on it — but “downfall” would have been more appropriate.
The Brooklyn man arrested for sucker-punching a cop at a Union Square protest the day after the Eric Garner decision wound up getting charged with an identical attack at a different demonstration that night because of his distinct — and highly unfashionable — accessory.
The fanny-pack-wearing puncher, who wore a mask during the assaults, was identified by police as Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick. He was waiting to be arraigned on Wednesday afternoon.
Yotameli Sayer appears at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Wednesday. Sayer is charged with hitting a police officer during a protest.
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Sayer was charged with assaulting a police officer after he was allegedly caught clocking a cop at the Union Square protest on Thursday night — the second night of protests throughout Manhattan following a Staten Island grand jury’s decision not to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in Garner’s chokehold death.
At the time, cops were trying to identify a suspect who landed a haymaker on a cop during a seemingly random attack earlier that day, at the Staten Island Ferry’s Whitehall terminal.
An NYPD sergeant gets punched on the side of the head by an Eric Garner protester in this caught-on-video assault at the Staten Island Ferry’s Whitehall terminal on Dec. 4.
In a video that was posted to YouTube that night — and has since garnered more than 10,000 views on YouTube — a group of protesters can be seen surrounding several officers as one cop pins a man to the ground.
As cops make a perimeter around the officer, a man wearing a black mask and a hood punched a sergeant in the side of the head before disappearing into the crowd.
Police later identified the puncher as Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick.
Following Sayer’s arrest in Union Square, police confiscated his property, including the “destitution” fanny pack, police sources said. Investigators then saw that the sucker-puncher seen in the ferry terminal video was wearing the same fanny pack, and booked Sayer for the second assault as well, the sources said. He was also charged with resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct, cops said.
When asked about the incidents during a question-and-answer session with reporters on Wednesday, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton accused Sayer of craven behavior.
“Some coward came out of the crowd, punched him in the face, then ran back into the crowd,” he said of the ferry terminal attack. “He’s the type of character we are talking about that is taking away the significance of these marches.”
WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE Watch the video of a protester punching an NYPD sergeant in the side of the head during a Dec. 4 demonstration at the Staten Island Ferry's Whitehall terminal. Cop sources say that a suspect arrested for socking a cop at a Union Square protest that day, Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick, was also charged with the ferry terminal assault because of the fanny pack he wore, sources said.
His fanny pack had the word “destitution” written on it — but “downfall” would have been more appropriate.
The Brooklyn man arrested for sucker-punching a cop at a Union Square protest the day after the Eric Garner decision wound up getting charged with an identical attack at a different demonstration that night because of his distinct — and highly unfashionable — accessory.
The fanny-pack-wearing puncher, who wore a mask during the assaults, was identified by police as Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick. He was waiting to be arraigned on Wednesday afternoon.
Yotameli Sayer appears at his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Wednesday. Sayer is charged with hitting a police officer during a protest.
PreviousNext
Sayer was charged with assaulting a police officer after he was allegedly caught clocking a cop at the Union Square protest on Thursday night — the second night of protests throughout Manhattan following a Staten Island grand jury’s decision not to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo in Garner’s chokehold death.
At the time, cops were trying to identify a suspect who landed a haymaker on a cop during a seemingly random attack earlier that day, at the Staten Island Ferry’s Whitehall terminal.
An NYPD sergeant gets punched on the side of the head by an Eric Garner protester in this caught-on-video assault at the Staten Island Ferry’s Whitehall terminal on Dec. 4.
In a video that was posted to YouTube that night — and has since garnered more than 10,000 views on YouTube — a group of protesters can be seen surrounding several officers as one cop pins a man to the ground.
As cops make a perimeter around the officer, a man wearing a black mask and a hood punched a sergeant in the side of the head before disappearing into the crowd.
Police later identified the puncher as Yotameli Sayer, 22, of Bushwick.
Following Sayer’s arrest in Union Square, police confiscated his property, including the “destitution” fanny pack, police sources said. Investigators then saw that the sucker-puncher seen in the ferry terminal video was wearing the same fanny pack, and booked Sayer for the second assault as well, the sources said. He was also charged with resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct, cops said.
When asked about the incidents during a question-and-answer session with reporters on Wednesday, NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton accused Sayer of craven behavior.
“Some coward came out of the crowd, punched him in the face, then ran back into the crowd,” he said of the ferry terminal attack. “He’s the type of character we are talking about that is taking away the significance of these marches.”
