(CNN) — Police in Maryland are looking for a cyclist who was caught on video assaulting three people posting flyers in support of Black Lives Matter.
Maryland-National Capital Park Police are asking for the public’s help in identifying a suspect in connection with an assault that took place Monday afternoon on the Capital Crescent Trail in Montgomery County, a release from Park Police said.
A man and two women were walking the trail, posting flyers in support of Black Lives Matter, when the suspect started to argue with them about the flyers and grabbed the flyers from one of the victims, the release said.
Police say the suspect then pushed his bicycle and started to charge one of the victims, causing them to fall to the ground.
Park Police have released images of the suspect, asking for help in finding the man, who is described as a 50 to 60-year-old white male, medium build, 6 feet in height, with short brown hair.
Park Police officers are patrolling the trail by foot, bicycle, and police car, the release said.
The man who shot the video of the cyclist confronting him and his friends while posting the signs told CNN they were out trying to influence change.
The man asked to not be identified for fear of retaliation and says he was out with two other friends posting flyers when they were approached by the cyclist. The man alleges the cyclist rode past them, then turned around and approached them.
“At first he seemed intrigued at our message, but he quickly got aggressive and tore the sheets from my hands,” he said. That’s when he pulled his phone out and started recording.
CNN cannot independently verify what happened prior to and after the video.
What the video shows
The video shows the cyclist approach another member of the group, who tells him to stay away. The cyclist then turns around toward the third member of the group and tears a roll of tape she had around her wrist.
The man behind the camera says that’s when the cyclist noticed he was filming and grabbed the bike and charged him.
In the video, he then falls to the ground. He says the cyclist demanded the tape he had in his hands. The recording ends as the man picks up his phone. He says the cyclist then rode down the path a bit before turning back around and yelling obscenities at the group before riding back the way he came.
Since the incident, the man who shot the video says he’s been back out placing more signs and has had people asking him for signs to post themselves.
“I spent my high school years in DC and I’m fortunate enough to live in an affluent neighborhood now where I feel I have a lot of privilege,” he said.
“There’s tons of people watching TV and saying ‘wow that’s horrible’ and shake their head, but don’t actually work to change it. That’s what I want to try and inspire is for people to actually go change things instead of just being an observer.”
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