The NYPD lieutenant who tried to arrest a migrant in Times Square, prompting a nationally publicized sidewalk scrum, was once found liable in a police brutality case that cost New York City taxpayers $5 million in legal payouts.
According to a federal civil rights complaint, Lt. Ben Kurian, the cop seen on bodycam video wrestling with a migrant who was resisting arrest on a Times Square sidewalk, was once part of a group of officers accused of beating and choking a man in his own home back in 2011.
According to the lawsuit, Kurian was responding to a 911 call about a disturbance at a birthday party when he allegedly used a baton to place the homeowner in a "choke hold" that was "so tight, he could hardly speak or breathe." When the case went to trial in 2016, a jury awarded the victim — an off-duty police officer named Larry Jackson — $15 million in damages. That award was later reduced to $5 million after review by a Brooklyn federal judge.
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In January, Kurian found himself in the middle of a controversial arrest again, when he tried to cuff a migrant for failing to scatter when asked to move from the sidewalk on West 42nd Street near 7th Avenue.
Bodycam video released by the Manhattan DA Wednesday shows Kurian telling a group of Hispanic men to move as they gathered on the edge of a sidewalk in Times Square. The officer repeatedly yells “vamos,” urging the group of young men to disperse, but when one of the individuals fails to move fast enough, Kurian pushes him to the wall of an adjacent building, and a scuffle ensues with the suspect trying to get away — while several of his supporters try to block the arrest by physically pulling cops off of the suspect.
The NYPD said the reason police initially engaged the group of men was because they were blocking the sidewalk and the reason they tried to arrest the initial suspect, 24-year-old Yohenry Brito, was because he failed to comply with the order to move along. Brito has been indicted for assault in the second degree is now being held on Rikers Island. Six other co-defendants have also been indicted in the case which prompted uproar about the initial release of some defendants without bail.
NYPD brass have depicted the sidewalk altercation as a clear case of defying a police order.
“The crowd is given a direction to please disburse, that they’re blocking the sidewalk. Everybody disburses except for Mr. Brito,” said Joseph Kenney, NYPD Chief of Detectives. “He turned around and got confrontational with the police officers. He refused a lawful order. They attempted to place him under arrest and the melee begins.”
But not everyone agrees with the official NYPD characterization of the video.
“From what I’m looking at, it didn’t have to go this far," said Neville Mitchell, a defense attorney who is not involved with the case. "Words shouldn’t be enough for police to act the way they acted. You would want to make sure you have, in this city, police officers are able to de-escalate situations."
Mitchell said the bodycam video released by the Manhattan DA appears to show pedestrians were having no apparent problems passing on the sidewalk.
The I-Team was unable to reach Kurian for comment, but in the civil rights case, he denied using excessive force. He claimed he was the one being attacked as he responded to a 911 call and encountered a chaotic brawl already in progress inside the Queens residence.
There is no public record of Kurian ever being disciplined by the department. The NYPD’s officer profile shows Kurian was promoted to sergeant the year after he was accused of choking Jackson. He was again promoted to lieutenant in 2021. Kurian has received three awards for excellent police duty and one departmental commendation in his nearly 20 year career.
The NYPD did not immediately respond to questions about why Kurian was promoted without having been disciplined for the police brutality judgement that cost taxpayers millions.
Eric Sanders, the attorney who represented Jackson in his lawsuit against Kurian and the NYPD, said it's troubling that the same police officer found liable for roughing up his client more than a decade ago has been promoted to lieutenant. Still Sanders, a former cop himself, said he didn’t find Kurian’s conduct in the Times Square incident objectionable.
“Although Kurian should have been fired for the Jackson assault and perjury in that case, this is a more nuanced crime problem,” Sanders said. “After viewing the body worn camera video, I’d say Kurian and the rest of the team handled this crime problem [complaints of loitering for the purposes of committing pick pockets, robberies, gang assaults and the like] in the Midtown area consistent with department training and prevailing law.”
