Shocking moment 'drunk' off-duty military police sergeant punches a cop after he refused requests to wear a face mask in Brazilian supermarket
This is the shocking moment a military police sergeant punched a cop after he refused orders to wear a face mask at a supermarket in Brazil.
According to online portal CN7, an off-duty João Batista cursed at employees and a manager after he was repeatedly told that he was required to wear a mask inside the supermarket in Aracati, Ceará on Thursday night.
Batista, a member of the Ceará Military Police who was reportedly drunk at the time, was offered a face mask but turned it down as he kept walking around the supermarket before the police were contacted by the manager.
'I even pointed out to him that I could give him the mask, if he had forgotten , and he just pushed me in, went in and said he was going to do shopping,' the manager told news outlet Reporter Ceará.
Military Police sergeant João Batista lifts his t-shirt over his mouth and nose while he is approached by police officers before he attacked one of the agents after he refused to wear a face mask at a supermarket in Ceará, Brazil, on Thursday night
Members of the Ceará state Military Police place João Batista in custody after he punched another cop in the face after authorities were called to the supermarket after he refused to wear a face mask
Video leaked on social media shows the moment Batista finished paying for his items when the off-duty cop is approached by lieutenant colonel AdrianÃzio de Oliveira and two police officers.
Batista is seen in the video lifting his t-shirt to cover his mouth and nose area.
He subsequently surprised de Oliveira by punching him in the face before the other agents intervened and placed him in handcuffs after a brief struggle with Batista, who towered over all of them.
Batista is led away in handcuffs from a supermarket in Ceará, Brazil, after he punched a cop in the face after he refused orders from a manager and employees to wear a mask
Police quickly intervene to arrest João Batista, a member of the Ceará, Brazil, Military Police department, who was captured on video punching a cop who had questioned him about refusing to wear a mask at a supermarket on Thursday
Batista was charged with assaulting a police officer and remained in custody.
He had been released from Military Prison on Monday after serving time for disciplinary reasons.
Since July 10, face mask use has been mandatory in public and private spaces throughout the northeastern state of Ceará as preventive measures to stop the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anyone failing to comply is subject to a fine ranging between $20 and $60. Companies can be fine up to $200 if they do not enforce the ordinance.
As of Friday, Brazil had reported 179,765 coronavirus deaths, second in the world to the United States. The South American nation, the epicenter of the pandemic in Latin America, is third behind the U.S. and India with 6,781,799 confirmed cases.