5 migrants plead not guilty in Times Square brawl with NYPD officers

Feb. 17 (UPI) -- Five migrant men charged in connection with the highly publicized assault of two New York City police officers in Times Square last month have pleaded not guilty in their first court appearances.

Yorman Reveron, Yohenry Brito, Kelvin Servita Arocha, Wilson Juarez and Darwin Andres Gomez-Izquiel appeared Friday before Judge Ruth Pickholz to answer charges that they participated in an assault of two police officers in Times Square on Jan. 27.

All five men pleaded not guilty and were placed in custody until they can post bail, WNBC-TV reported.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said last week two other unnamed people have been indicted in connection with the case but have not yet been apprehended, while three more allegedly involved in the brawl have not been identified.

Authorities say the fight erupted after Police Lt. Ben Kurian and Officer Zunxu Tian attempted to disperse the men who were allegedly acting "disorderly" in front of a migrant shelter on West 42nd Street.

Brito, whose interaction with officers allegedly ignited the brawl, appeared in court with a group of people his lawyer said were immigration advocates.

Bodycam footage from the district attorney's office showed the officers approaching the men and telling them to move to West 41st Street. Most of the men complied, but Brito could be seen lagging behind and reaching for something in a baby stroller. The officers then pushed Brito up against a wall, after which the group circled back and got involved.

"The two officers and Mr. Brito tumbled to the ground, and throughout the struggle others from the group interfered with the officers, including by pulling, grabbing and kicking them," Neil Greenwell, an assistant district attorney, said in court.

Brito's attorney said his client was targeted by police for no reason.

"[You can] see the officers telling people to move on the sidewalk who are just standing there doing nothing," he said.

Brito is scheduled to appear in court again this month to review the source of payment for his previously posted $15,000 bail.

Reveron, whose bail was set at $100,000, was the only defendant besides Brito not already in police custody.

Gomez-Izquiel, who has a $50,000 bail, was in NYPD custody due to an unrelated robbery charge earlier this week.

Arocha, whose bail was set at $15,000 bail, and Juarez, who has a $1 bail, were brought into court out of federal immigration custody. Juarez had a symbolic bail of $1 to keep him on Rikers Island instead of facing deportation before the case is resolved.

Juarez was in ICE custody because he missed a court date in Texas after moving to New York. He was charged only with a count of tampering with physical evidence in the Jan. 27 incident.

"Since this incident has taken place, his image has been splashed all over the news," Juarez attorney Adrienne Edward told the court, according to the New York Daily News. "Mr. Juarez was never involved in any physical altercation and unfortunately the same picture continues to get published."

Newly released bodycam footage appeared to contradict NYPD's original claim that the men had initiated the conflict. False rumors that some of the defendants had fled on a bus to California have also complicated the case.

Several of the men's attorneys noted the district attorney's office in earlier court hearings did not request bail for most of the suspects.

All men are due back in court April 2.