Shocking video shows the moment NYPD cops surround and try to arrest the ex-convict wanted for a water-bucket attack on police, but he slips through their fingers and sprints down the block before he’s finally handcuffed.
NYPD police tried to arrest Keith Ford, who is on parole for an attempted robbery conviction, on Tuesday in the Bronx in connection to an attack where he allegedly doused cops with buckets of water last month.
But the 28-year-old didn’t follow commands when he was surrounded by three officers of NYPD’s Bronx Warrant Squad. He shouted ‘What is this for?’ then bolted away, according to the New York Post.
Ford, who is 6ft 5 and 255lbs, was eventually cornered, arrested, and charged with two counts of criminal mischief, obstructing governmental administration and disorderly conduct for throwing buckets of water on two uniformed police officers on July 21.
Ex-convict Keith Ford, 28, sprinted away from NYPD officers on Tuesday when they tried to arrest him for launching a water-bucket attack on cops last month
Cellphone footage of the arrest shows officers from NYPD’s Bronx Warrant Squad trying to arrest Ford on Tuesday as he angrily shouts ‘What is this for?’ and resists officers that tried to cuff him
At one point an officer threw him to the ground in an effort to subdue him, but Ford eventually got back up and the officers gave him some space before he sprinted off
Ford pretended to put his hands behind his back and instead bolted away from the officers
In the two-minute clip three police officers surround Ford and try to place his hands in cuffs.
He appears to be shocked by the officers and angrily shouts: ‘What is this for? Let me get my stuff!’
The three officers struggle to control him and one throws him to the ground in an effort to subdue him.
Ford gets back up and is swarmed by the officers who order him to put his hands behind his back.
He starts to put his hands behind his back, appearing compliant, but when one officer steps forward to cuff him, he takes off running.
The person filming the interaction cheers him on as he makes his way down the street.
As he runs, an officer draws a Taser and hits Ford. Ford then yanks the barb from his clothes and continues to round down the block.
After he ran around the corner, cops were able to surround him, place him against a wall, and arrest him.
He was booked into jail for allegedly being involved in a July 21 water-bucket throwing incident on the corner of Boston Road and East 173rd Street that was caught on video.
He ran down the block as the officers chased after him drawing their tasers
An officer tries to hit him with a taser but he appears to pull the barb off his clothes and continues to sprint down the street
The man filming his escape cheered Ford on as he raced down the block with officers in tow
The officers eventually caught up to him, held him against a wall, and placed him in handcuffs
The water-bucket throwing incident was one of many where New Yorkers doused uniformed cops with water during lat month’s heat wave, leading to public outcry and criticism from Mayor Bill de Blasio and President Trump.
In that clip he and a group of people are seen taunting two uniformed female cops on street corner then cross it armed with water guns and buckets filled with water to drench the two cops.
The clip doesn’t show any faces but shows the group targeting the officers and howling with laughter.
Ford, who also has a prior robbery conviction, was granted $1 bail at his arraignment but he was held for allegedly violating terms of his parole, according to jail records. He’s is scheduled to return to court on September 12.
The video of his brazen arrest where he tried to evade police has sparked outrage among NYPD officials.
The head of the NYPD Detectives’ Endowment Association said the Thursday incident showed ‘how emboldened criminals have become, thanks to the rhetoric of our phony politicians.’
He was wanted for a viral video showing him douse two uniformed officers with buckets of water on July 21 on the corner of Boston Road and East 173rd Street
The incident was one of series of water bucket attacks on cops in July
‘It’s the clear example of how indecision from being constantly criticized and second-guessed all the time plays out on the street. It’s a miracle that these detectives were not injured,’ DEA President Michael Palladino said.
‘This is gonna continue to happen. Everyone thinks they’re gonna be a reality TV star — they’re gonna film the incident, they’re gonna hope that the cops do their job,’ NYPD Sgt. Joseph Imperatrice, the founder of the non-profit Blue Lives Matter NYC, said on the video.
‘They’re going to do everything in their power now to not only resist arrest but give officers a hard time – and you can see it in that video.’