A man seen on video throwing bottles at deputies during a protest in Plant City has been arrested.
Deputies with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office were monitoring a mostly peaceful protest on Tuesday evening, June 2, at the Race Trac located at 1722 James L. Redman Parkway in Plant City. They came into contact with Osvaldo “Ozzy” Banda, 21, when he intentionally tried to injure law enforcement officers on scene by throwing bottles at them from the crowd.
Following the incident, Banda retreated back into the crowd of protesters in an attempt to hide from deputies. Banda was also wearing a face-covering at the time.
Deputies were able to locate Banda, and for the protection of others, including protesters, fired one round of less-lethal ammunition as he ran away from the site of the protests. After later identifying Banda as the suspect, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office contacted Banda to make him aware there was a warrant for his arrest. Banda turned himself in at Orient Road Jail on Friday night, June 5.
HCSO has learned that associates for Banda have been spreading misinformation regarding the incident and his arrest. To confirm why he was arrested, HCSO is releasing video footage that captured Banda in the act of throwing a bottle at deputies. The video can be found on the HCSOSheriff Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqz9xGlWd3c&feature=youtu.be
“The moment someone tries to incite violence, it is our duty to do everything we can to protect the public and our deputies,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister. “Throwing objects at deputies in an effort to harm them is unacceptable, and anyone caught doing so will be punished to the fullest extent of the law. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office respects the rights of people to peacefully protest.”
ARRESTED:
NAME: Osvaldo Banda
AGE: 21
CHARGES: Rioting or Inciting to Riot, Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer (x3)
