WARNING: CONTAINS GRAPHIC VIDEO. VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED.
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (WSVN) — Cellphone video captured the harrowing moments when, police said, a Miami Beach restaurant owner and employees beat up a man who had defaced their food truck, leaving the victim critically injured.
The footage, obtained by 7News, captured the assailants repeatedly punching and stomping on the victim behind Harold’s Chicken and Shrimp, located in the area of Washington Avenue and 13th Street, back on June 27.
“Oh, my God. I think he’s dead,” a witness is heard saying in Spanish in the cellphone video.
An arrest warrant states witnesses told officers at least one of the attackers looked “possessed by a demon.”
Police body camera video captured the victim bloodied and bruised.
“Keep breathing. Stay with me, all right, man?” an officer is heard saying to the victim.
According to the arrest warrant, the attackers pulled off the victim’s pants and pummeled him with his own belt as he was “lying on the ground, bleeding and naked from the waist down.”
Multiple witnesses called police.
“They’re removing his clothes,” a witness is heard saying in the cellphone video.
The incident took place two blocks away from Miami Beach Police Headquarters. Officers responded shortly after.
“Get on the [expletive] ground! Do it now!” an officer is heard saying on bodycam video.
Moments later, another officer is seen pushing the suspect to the ground.
The suspect, Terrance Delaney, told officers he owns Harold’s Chicken and Shrimp and that the victim had just vandalized his truck.
“He spray-painted my truck! That’s my food truck!” Delaney told an officer.
“We get here, we see this, and we see you two over him,” the officer replied.
“My property is damaged!” said Delaney.
“Look at him. You think what I’m worried about right now is your property?” said the officer.
“Who did this to him?” another officer said.
“I’m saying, you don’t give a [expletive] about my truck,” said Delaney.
“Listen, this guy is [expletive] dying!” said the first officer. “That [truck] can be repainted. This guy can’t be revived if he dies.”
The bodycam video also captured the victim’s girlfriend crying in agony.
“I’m so sorry,” she told the victim.
Before police responded, she was seen on video trying to stop the assault, but police said she was also roughed up, thrown to the ground by Delaney, who was arrested that morning.
At least two others, Adrian Williams and Adrian Ridley, were taken into custody days later. They were all charged with attempted murder.
A day after the crime, a 7News crew went to the restaurant looking for an interview, but no one wanted to talk.
By September, the case was dropped. The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office said, “The victim in this case was non-cooperative with detectives.”
Officials with the state attorney’s office also said they were no longer able to reach the victim.
The victim suffered critical injuries but was in recovery.
Delaney was previously arrested in 2022, also for attempted murder, after police said he shot an off-duty police officer visiting from Minnesota.
Just like in the most recent case, the victim did not want to cooperate, the state attorney’s office said, and the case was dropped.
Speaking with 7News on Friday, Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner called the beating “gruesome and horrific.” He also commended Miami Beach Police officers for stepping in and quickly making an apprehension, adding that it’s unfortunate that there was no cooperation between victims, witnesses and the state attorney’s office.
As of Friday night, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office has not responded to 7News’ request to interview State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.
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