After a brutal brawl that broke out when left-wing Antifa members “intercept[ed]” a group of right-wing “Proud Boys” in Manhattan Friday night, police say they are looking for a total of twelve people caught on video resorting to violence, including three Antifa and nine Proud Boys.
The Daily Beast, which emphasizes the charges against the right-wing group in its headline, initially referring to the police-identified Antifa members as simply “protesters,” reports:
The New York Police Department announced that it has enough evidence to charge nine members of the right-wing group Proud Boys and three protestors with various counts of rioting, assault, and attempted assault in connection with a brawl that erupted between the two sides a few blocks from a city Republican club following a speech Friday by Proud Boys leader Gavin McInnes.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea said Monday that police recovered multiple videos of the incident and have spoken to witnesses and sources as they piece together what took place in the moments after Proud Boys and associates left the the Metropolitan Republican Club in Manhattan.
The NYPD provided details about the violent encounter between the two violence-embracing groups in a 25-minute press briefing. After exiting the club around 8:20 p.m. Friday, officers initially kept the Proud Boys separated from the Antifa members. At Park Ave. and 84th, the two groups began to shout at each other. Police say they believe Antifa members, wearing black masks, initiated the violence, “intercept[ing]” the Proud Boys at 82nd between Park and Lexington.
The video (below) seems to confirm NYPD’s account, with Antifa members initially throwing objects and punches and the right-wing group quickly responding in kind.
“This is a little awkward for the Daily Beast narrative isn’t it?” McInnes told the Daily Beast, in reference to the video. “Turns out it was Antifa who started the fight.”
The Daily Beast notes that injured Antifa members refused to either help or accept help from police, body camera audio recording catching injured “protesters” telling police that “nobody wants to talk to you” when asked to identify who attacked them. “Some anti-fascists and anarchists often refuse to comply with police investigations,” the Beast notes.
Video below (warning: violence):