A Florida Republican has been arrested for allegedly choking one teenager and slapping another during a Miami campaign event which spiraled out of control.
George Bardmesser, an attorney who is vying to become the Sunny Isles Beach commissioner, has been charged with two counts of child abuse after chaos unfolded during a coffee meet-up at a Cuban restaurant on Sunday.
The Russian-American 59-year-old was booked at the Miami Dade Corrections & Rehabilitation Center around 6.30pm that day, online records show.
Witnesses told local news channel WPLG that Bardmesser assaulted two teens at El Tropico Cuban Cuisine in Sunny Isles Beach before cops led him away in handcuffs.
‘There was a couple of kids sitting and I don’t know whether they were instigating, said something, generated this gentleman to get up. He put a chokehold on one of the kids and slapped another one,’ said restaurant owner Pedro Vera.
Florida Republican George Bardmesser has been arrested for allegedly slapping one teenager before choking another during a campaign event at a Cuban restaurant
George Bardmesser, a Russian-American attorney who is vying to become the Sunny Isles Beach commissioner, has been charged with two counts of child abuse after the coffee meet-up spiraled out of control on Sunday
‘I would never bring my kids to a political event if I thought I was putting them in harm,’ Sunny Isles Beach commissioner Fabiola Stuyvesant said. She attended the event with the teenagers Bardmesser allegedly attacked
‘He got out of hand. He lost control. It should have never happened.’
Shocking video of the aftermath shows a woman shouting ‘you hit a child!’ at Bardmesser, who is wearing his political campaign t-shirt, as he shrugs in response.
The political hopeful is later seen being held close to a wall by another man at the restaurant who appears to be attempting to engage with him.
Sunny Isles Beach commissioner Fabiola Stuyvesant attended the coffee meet with the teenagers Bardmesser allegedly assaulted. It’s unclear what her relation to them is.
‘I would never bring my kids to a political event if I thought I was putting them in harm,’ Stuyvesant told WPLG.
‘As a parent, it’s the worst nightmare you could have — to see your child be hurt by a big guy.’
Bardmesser is 6’2” and weighs in at 230lbs, according to his booking record. A bond amount has not yet been set.
He faces two charges of child abuse with no great bodily harm.
Ironically, the Republican had pledged to ‘invest in our police’ in his campaign posters.
Bardmesser is 6’2” and weighs in at 230lbs, according to his booking record. A bond amount has not yet been set. He faces two charges of child abuse with no great bodily harm
George Bardmesser, a Russian-American attorney who is vying to become the Sunny Isles Beach commissioner, has been charged with two counts of child abuse after the coffee meet-up spiraled out of control on Sunday
The political hopeful is later seen being held close to a wall by another man at the restaurant who appears to be attempting to engage with him
Bardmesser is an attorney who specializes in intellectual property law. He has been a New York State Bar member since 1998.
He has also written a fiction novel called Future Shot, about a time-traveling soldier from a post-apocalyptic future.