Dad was detained after striking a crippled veteran umpire at his son’s baseball game
At his son’s baseball game, a Florida dad was caught sucker-punching the umpire, who was also a handicapped veteran.
According to a video made public by the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office in central Florida, the umpire, Reinaldo Mora, was standing by the backstop shortly after a game when a guy, Jorge Aponte Gonzalez, who was later recognized by authorities, approached him from behind and hit him in the head.
After the attack on a nearby high school on April 18, the video shows Gonzalez being restrained by two guys as Mora falls to the ground and worried players and parents rush forward to help.
Gonzalez may or may not have a lawyer, but his phone number could not be found.
At a news conference last week, Sheriff Marcos Lopez said, “This umpire… does this because he has a passion for baseball, he likes to give back to his community, and he loves to dedicate his time to baseball and to kids.”
He is a decent dude.
Prior to the attack, Mora told WKMG-TV that the attack completely caught him off guard.
“All of a sudden, I experienced a sensation in my temple. knocked me down,” Mora said, adding that he thinks it happened because he had warned Gonzalez’s son earlier in the game for unsportsmanlike behavior.
According to him, the son was angry about the warning and was cussing frequently.
Mora said that he wasn’t aware that he had been punched until other people informed him. Until he saw the security film that showed him being laid out, he didn’t really understand it.
“I approach every game with the intention of having fun. When you want to relax, sell your gear and go fishing, he said. “We need to get to work. We want to blend in as much as we can. I guess I wasn’t invisible to this person after all.
What occurs next?
Gonzalez was detained on Wednesday on suspicion of assaulting a sports official and interfering with a school activity. Ultimately, prosecutors will determine whether to proceed with the investigation and if Gonzalez will be charged.
Gonzalez was laughing as he was led through the station in handcuffs, according to Lopez, who said he spoke to Gonzalez shortly after his detention and sent him a video.
He is essentially laughing as a result of his response to my warning that you are being detained: “I’m being arrested for defending my kid?” Lopez claimed, adding that in response, he told Gonzalez, “There is no reason for you to take this to this level.”
According to Lopez, parents who could become too upset to see their children’s games in person can think about watching them afterward on YouTube.
No parent should behave in such a manner in front of their children, he stated. “No one is being compensated here. There is no MLB here.