SANTA ANA – Olivia Arzate knew her son had been arrested, but she didn’t understand at first why he ended up in a hospital.
It was weeks later that she saw a video of her son’s arrest – him on the ground, an officer delivering six punches and another swinging a baton at her son’s legs.
“Yes, arrest and punish him, but why did he hit him?” Arzate said.
Santa Ana police said this week the department is investigating the use of force by officers recorded by a nearby surveillance camera the night of the arrest. Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said investigators were aware of the video that night but were unable to obtain a copy for the internal investigation until weeks later.
Santa Ana police officials allege that Arzate’s 27-year-old son, Edgar Vargas Arzate, fled from officers during a burglary call on June 20, jumping over backyard fences and climbing on roofs.
Officers caught up with him near the 400 block of Sycamore Street – a few blocks from his home – and officers used force to take him into custody, Bertagna said. Edgar Vargas Arzate has been charged with attempted burglary, battery on a peace officer, unlawful tampering of a vehicle and resisting a police officer , according to court records.
The video was captured by the security cameras of a nearby neighbor. In it, Edgar Vargas Arzate raises his hands into the air while an officer signals with a flashlight for him to get on the ground.
Edgar Vargas Vargas lays on his stomach, out of view of the camera, and another officer moves toward him, then appears to put a knee on his back and delivers six consecutive punches. More officers arrive. At one point, Edgar Vargas Arzate can be seen on his side as officers reach toward his hands, which are near his stomach. For much of the video, Edgar Vargas Arzate’s actions are just outside the view of the camera.
Three officers are also seen holding Vargas and struggling with him on the ground, while a fourth delivers repeated blows to what appears to be Edgar Vargas Vargas’ legs with a baton.
The video was recorded by security cameras in the home of Miriam Grajales, whose family witnessed the arrest.
“He (the officer) started hitting him hard, with anger,” Grajales said. “The guy (Edgar Vargas Arzate) was yelling, ‘Help me! Help me!’”
Burglary call
Officers were responding to a call of a burglary nearby when the foot pursuit began, Bertagna said. Police then received multiple calls of a man running through backyards in the area.
Resident Socorro Acosta said her son heard someone on their porch, then in their backyard. When that person tried to open a locked window, Acosta called police.
“He looked like he was hiding, high on drugs,” she said.
Olivia Arzate believes that may have been the case. Her son, she said, has been addicted to methamphetamine and sometimes reacts with paranoia.
In her home, she showed medical bills for detox treatment and long lists of phone numbers from when she has tried to get help for her son, she said. She and her husband have reached out to drug treatment facilities and at least once reported him to police in hopes the arrest would help straighten him out.
Court records show Edgar Vargas Arzate has convictions for burglary and possession of a controlled substance going back to 2005. In 2006, he was sentenced to two years in state prison for theft with a prior felony, buying or receiving a stolen vehicle and hit-and-run with property damage.
According to the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, he currently has an immigration hold.
Drug use
Olivia Arzate said she believes her son was high that day and fled from police out of paranoia.
“I think he got scared, and he thought to run,” she said.
On July 4, Olivia Arzate contacted Grajales and saw the video for the first time.
“It’s an injustice, what they did to my son,” said Olivia Arzate.
When she tried to find her son, Olivia Arzate said she was told he was taken to St. Joseph Hospital in Orange.
Officers reported the use of force as they are required to do, Bertagna said, and the department is conducting an administrative review.
Bertagna said he could not comment on the administrative review currently underway.
Contact the writer: 714-796-7949
