The man charged with assaulting a Norwalk police officer at the Oyster Festival last week told News 12 his side of the story after a court appearance Monday in Stamford.
Police say Ezekiel Syphrette, 31, and another man, who police are still looking for,
attacked an officer on Saturday, Sept. 10 after police broke up two fights at the Norwalk Oyster Festival.
Syphrette and his attorney Darnell Crosland say they have cellphone video showing the Norwalk police officer swearing at a teenage girl. Crosland says his client was only trying to help.
"He was there with his daughter and he saw another person's daughter being manhandled by an officer and he stepped in as a father and said ‘Hey, that's a young girl. Do you understand that?’ And then he walked away peacefully and as he walked away, this cop caught up with him," said Crosland.
Syphrette's mother says when her son was arrested, police left her granddaughter all alone at the Oyster Festival.
"It just brings tears to my eyes to see the abuse that my son is going through for trying to help someone," said Barbara Smalls, Syphrette's mother.
Attorney Darnell Crosland says he is trying to enter the video as evidence. Syphrette is back in court in November.
Police say the officer is still recovering. They're still not sure when he can come back to work.