Son, 18, of retired NYPD detective is charged after ‘ramming his BMW through a group of BLM protesters surrounding his car outside a Manhattan police station’
- Justin Burgos, 18, was behind the wheel of his BMW, when he pierced through the group of protesters on their bicycles in the West Village
- The incident occurred around 10:20 p.m. Wednesday night during a protest to demand a cop be fired over the alleged assault of a gay black man in 2013
- Footage uploaded to social media depicts Burgos allegedly accelerating through the crowd, clipping two protesters as he sped away
- As a result, an 18-year-old protester was hit by Burgos BMW and treated at the scene for an injured right knee, police said.
- Police arrested Burgos near the intersection of Grove and Bleecker streets and charged him with leaving the scene of an accident among other charges
- On Thursday, Burgos was freed without bail at arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court
- According to a police source, Burgos is the son of an NYPD deputy inspector who retired from the department in 2018
The teenage son of a retired NYPD commander has been arrested after allegedly driving his BMW through a group of protesters in New York City leaving an 18-year-old injured.
Justin Burgos, 18, was driving his BMW in the West Village at about 10.20pm on Wednesday when the street was blocked off by a group of protesters on bicycles.
The group were protesting near the NYPD’s Sixth Precinct as the called for Sgt Joseph Cuervo to be fired following allegations he assaulted a gay black man back in 2013.
Footage taken by witnesses and shared on social media allegedly shows Burgos honking his car horn as he tried to force his way through the group of protestors blocking off the street.
Justin Burgos, 18, (pictured) was behind the wheel of his BMW, when he pierced through the group of protesters on their bicycles in the West Village at about 10:20 p.m. Wednesday night
The protesters, as well as police, could be seen circling his car as he continued to honk and appeared to gradually be inching the vehicle forward.
Eventually, a bike appeared to become stuck under the car.
An officer could be seen ripping the bike away and the driver accelerated through the crowd as he drove off.
The video shows the driver clipping two protesters as he fled the area.
Police said an 18-year-old protester was hit by the BMW and was treated at the scene for injuries to his right knee.
They arrested Burgos nearby near the intersection of Grove and Bleecker streets.
He has been charged with leaving the scene of an accident, reckless endangerment, fleeing an officer in a vehicle, in addition to other charges.
Police said the teen had become frustrated when protesters started blocking the road.
According to a police source, Burgos is the son of an NYPD deputy inspector who retired from the department in 2018.
Burgos, who lives in Staten Island, was freed without bail during his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday.
Footage shared on social media shows the driver honking his horn as he tries to barrel through the blockade or protestors.
Police arrested Burgos (pictured) near the intersection of Grove and Bleecker streets and charged him with leaving the scene of an accident, reckless endangerment, fleeing an officer in a vehicle, in addition to other charges
Burgos, who lives in Staten Island, was freed without bail during his arraignment in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday (left). Burgos is the son of an NYPD deputy inspector who retired from the department in 2018
A Twitter user who posted the video wrote: ‘Someone just ran their car into #FireCuervo protesters right outside of NYPD’s 6th precinct.
‘NYPD came & ripped a protester’s bike out of the car’s way before the car went through & hit protesters as it sped off. Protesters ran after the car & then cops ran after them & the car.’
The group of protesters were near the NYPD precinct to push for the firing of Sgt. Cuervo over the 2013 incident involving Michael Watson.
Watson, a gay black man, filed a lawsuit against the NYPD officer and several others in 2015.
According to the lawsuit, Cuervo and other officers had allegedly mocked him and used homophobic slurs after finding him with a sex toy.
The ordeal allegedly unfolded during a marijuana bust.
Cuervo allegedly threw Watson to the floor and punched and kicked him when he talked back to the officers, the lawsuit says.
Watson was given a $150,000 settlement from the city in 2017 regarding the lawsuit.
The protesters were demonstrating near the NYPD’s near the Sixth Precinct stationhouse over alleged abuse carried out by an officer against a black man in 2013
Video uploaded to social media depicts Burgos allegedly accelerating through the crowd, clipping two protesters as he sped away during the Wednesday night incident