VIDEOS: Incident in Providence Involving Police Leads to Melee, Arrests
GoLocalProv News Team
VIDEOS: Incident in Providence Involving Police Leads to Melee, Arrests
Milagro Medina, who resides on Mercy Street in Silver Lake, told GoLocal that four males were sitting in a car outside of her house, “smoking and drinking,” when the police showed up.
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According to the Providence Police report, officers were patrolling the area when they observed a dark-colored sedan parked in front of the residence shortly after 7:30 PM.
“Police know this address to be the residence of a subject who is known to have eluded police several times in the past, as well as previous narcotic related offenses,” stated the Providence police report.
The incident resulted in a near brawl between Providence Patrolman Gagnon and Joshua Tangui -- who was ultimately arrested and charged.
Video Recordings -- and Police Report
The police report states that upon spotlighting the interior of the vehicle, police observed four subjects who they say immediately stopped what they were doing and became “wide-eyed with an apparent nervous look on their face."
According to the report, police exited the cruiser and said they observed the back right rear passenger to “nervously scan the area, which is a known characteristic of a subject planning to flee from police.”
The report states that as police approached the passenger side of the vehicle, the passenger was “observed to have been hunched over with his hands concealed towards the floorboard, moving his arms in a manner consistent with someone concealing an object, then quickly sitting back in the upright position.”
Police said in the report they maintained a close visual while initiating conversation with the front seat passenger, who police said they were familiar with through “numerous previous encounters to include firearm charges as well as affiliating with known Hartford gang members.”
Due to the “extremely nervous behavior” of two of the individuals, police reported that one male was removed from the vehicle, when police conducted a terry frisk for weapons, then seated him in the rear of a marked cruiser.
The second “nervous” individual -- Tangui -- quickly exited the vehicle without instructions, according to the police report "in an apparent attempt to flee" -- and police “grabbed hold of [him] to prevent escape and conduct a pat-down for officer safety.”
Police stated Tangui “immediately began pulling away keeping his hands and arms close to his body, not allowing police to gain control of him [and] police continued to struggle and at this point were unsure if he was in possession of any weapons.”
“[Gagnon] began delivering several closed fists strikes to [the subject] as he continued to resist police," Providence police reported. "Police at this point delivered several more closed fists strikes and knees to [subject’s] body and were able to take him to the ground in the prone position where he was subsequently handcuffed without further incident."
Gun Found, Arrests Made
After every subject was detained, police began to search the immediate area, and upon searching the rear passenger floorboard, police observed in plain view a black pistol with a blue, transparent and extended magazine.
The firearm was determined to have fourteen (14) rounds in the magazine with none in the chamber. The firearm was further determined as a “ghost gun” as it did not display any brand or serial number.
“I get that they ultimately found a weapon,” said Medina. “But this kid was just asking them why he was being pulled out, and the cops just started punching him.”
Medina said cops then pulled weapons on bystanders, including her cousin.
Police reported that Medina’s daughter “ran over to the sedan that was being investigated and grabbed the keys placed on top of the vehicle.”
Police reported that then grabbed ahold of her where she began to struggle and pull away from police as she walked towards the front stairs of the residence, and that she “persistently kept her hands underneath her body while she laid in the prone position” before police arrested her.
Three of the four subjects were released at the scene. Tangui was revealed to have a bench warrant and two arrest warrants out of Warwick.
Tangui was later transported to Central station. Medina's daughter Arialisa was transported to Central Station and charged by patrol for one count of obstruction and one count of resisting arrest.
Providence Police Chief Hugh Clements was not available for comment at time of publication.
Editor's Note: A previous version stated Medina's son was in the car; Medina said he was not.