Reports: British Army Rubgy Players Accused Of Assaulting Off-Duty Cop
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Six British Army rugby players were charged late last week with attacking an off-duty NYPD officer following a bar fight in Murray Hill, according to published reports.
The fight happened early Friday outside the Mercury Bar on Third Avenue, reports said. Officer Arif Tasoren said he was a police officer when the men allegedly attacked him, but the men allegedly replied, "We don't care" and "F**k the police," according to a New York Post report.
The off-duty officer allegedly pulled a pocket knife in self-defense, according to multiple reports.
A Daily Mail report said the flight left blood spattered for half a block. The rugby players claimed the officer made a racist remark against them before the fight broke out, the newspaper reported.
The men are all from Fiji but are based in Edinburgh, the Daily Mail reported. They are part of an Army rugby team now on a tour of the East Coast, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper identified the soldiers as Pte. Iliakini Raderua, 30; Cpl. Thomas Shute, 34; Pvt. Felite Vunisarati, 34; Pte. Mosese Kuruala, 27; Pvt. Joeli Raduva, 34; and Lance Cpl. Iosefo Yavala, 33. All were charged with assault, while Yavala was also charged with robbery after he allegedly was found with the officer's cell phone, the newspaper reported.
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