Particle.news
Download on the App Store

Two Phoenix Officers Arrested in Alleged Unreported Violent Traffic Stop

The arrests raise urgent questions about police transparency, possible policy violations, effects on open prosecutions.

Overview

  • Two Phoenix officers are accused of violently assaulting a couple during an Aug. 5 traffic stop in south Phoenix in which victims say they were tased, punched and threatened at gunpoint.
  • Phoenix’s Special Investigations Detail is leading a criminal probe and the department’s Professional Standards Bureau will follow with an internal administrative review.
  • Local reporting identified the officers as Luis Vasquez Jr. and Antonio Felix, who were placed on administrative leave and have been reported arrested by Phoenix police.
  • Investigators do not have department body-worn camera footage because the officers failed to activate their cameras and Tempe police hold victim interviews and injury photos that may take months to release.
  • The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office is reviewing any open cases that list the officers as witnesses and community leaders and state lawmakers are demanding full disclosure and a possible outside third-party investigation.