ORLANDO, Fla. — More details have been released after two men said an Orlando police officer beat their Ford Mustang with a two-by-four board while on vacation last July.
The driver of the car said the incident left him with glass in his eye.
The officer, Gabriel Pagan, was charged with four felonies and has been relieved of duty. He is on paid administrative leave.
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Interviews released by the State Attorney's Office show that other OPD officers said they were told by Pagan that he hit the vehicle because the car was revving its motor and almost hit him.
The men inside that car tell a different story.
The state attorney heard both sides, and decided the officer was not only out of line, but that what he did was enough to charge him with a crime.
The incident occurred after the state attorney said Pagan stopped a homeless man who was carrying the board in downtown Orlando.
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Officers said Pagan took the board with him when he left to respond to other calls.
When they got back to the station, officers said Pagan claimed the driver was acting aggressively towards him, which caused him to become fearful and he hit the windshield.
The officers said they told Pagan to do a report, but that they didn't think he followed through.
An investigation began after the men said they called OPD and then internal affairs.
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The men said they never stopped to confront the officer after the alleged incident, because they said they were too scared they would be arrested.
According to documents, surveillance video from a nearby bar shows the officer hitting the car, but the state attorney said the video is exempt from public release.
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