Florida cop disciplined for pushing suspect off roof, report says

Sergeant told officer, 'just push him off,' video shows

KISSIMMEE, Fla. – A Kissimmee police officer who pushed a suspect off a roof and the sergeant who told him to do so were found to have violated department policy, according to an internal affairs report.

The 41-page document, released by the Kissimmee Police Department, details the March 3, 2019 incident involving officer Plenio Massiah and Sgt. Anthony Amada.

The two Kissimmee officers were among several to respond to a home where a stolen 2004 Toyota Corolla was located. The victim in the case said her ex-boyfriend, Yadiel Torres, stole her vehicle during an argument, according to the report.

Police said the woman told them that Torres was known to be armed.

When officers arrived at the home, Torres fled upstairs then climbed through a window onto a roof, records show.

Massiah wrote in his report that he believed Torres was trying to escape, so he followed Torres onto the roof and told him to put his hands up. Just as Massiah was about to place Torres in handcuffs, Torres ran on the roof.

Body camera video shows Torres sat down at the edge of the roof with his legs dangling over the side.

"Now you've got no choice but to jump down, now you've got no choice," Massiah told Torres, according to the footage.

Torres tried to explain that he's not going to run anymore, video shows.

"Just push him off, push him off," Amada tells Massiah in the footage.

"I was just going through the window," Torres said.

At that point, video shows Massiah placing his right hand on Torres' right shoulder and pushing him off the 9-foot roof to the ground below, where Amada and another officer were waiting.

Records show Amada deployed his Taser after Torres landed on the ground.

"All right, hey, I'm down. I'm not resisting," Torres said as the Taser was being deployed, according to the video.

According to the internal affairs report, Amada was found to have violated policies regarding force and carelessness. It was recommended that he be terminated but he resigned in June.

Massiah was found to have violated the use of force policy and as a result, was issued an eight-hour suspension, but he opted to forfeit a vacation day instead.