Exclusive: 'Iron Mike' Hotel Brawl Caught On Tape
Tyson Attorney: 'He Was Acting In Self-Defense'
POSTED: 7:46 a.m. EDT July 29, 2003
UPDATED: 8:25 a.m. EDT July 31, 2003
NEW YORK -- While it will be some time before a jury gets to view the security tape, attorneys for the former heavyweight champ, and the men on the receiving end of his rage continue to argue who the tape actually helps or hurts.
Images: Breakdown Of Mike Tyson Brawl
What's clear on the security tape is that Mike Tyson is on the attack. What's not clear is what lead up to the brawl. Words were exchanged, but was the former heavyweight champ justified in using violence? The surveillance videotape, which was obtained by NewsChannel 4's Scott Weinberger, sheds new light on the Brooklyn brawl involving former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson. Tyson (dressed in all black in the video) throws what is thought to be the first punch knocking Samuel Velez, (dressed in a white sweat suit in the video) off of his feet. Then, as the boxer stands over Velez, Velez's wife tries to help her husband, but Tyson tosses her aside. He then leaves, while Velez's wife, picks up her stunned husband, who makes several attempts to get up. Seconds later, Tyson is back and once again, Velez is down for the count. A few more seconds pass, then Velez exits, but as he leaves, Tyson is seen making a dash across the hall, and another second camera captures another punch. Tyson's attorney, Mel Sachs, agreed to look at the security tape. "He was acting in self-defense," Sachs said. Sachs said that after Tyson refused to sign an autograph in front of the Brooklyn Marriott Hotel, he was threatened by Velez and Nestor Alvarez. "He was provoked by these two men, he was told 'you've got fists, we got guns,'" Sachs said. "This was coupled with their conduct where they were reaching for their waist as if they were reaching for guns." But prosecutors say there was no gun, and the attorney for Velez and Alverez, Earl Brown, said no such threat was ever made. No security cameras caught the action outside the hotel, but what the tape from the cameras inside does show is that his clients were being pursued by the former heavyweight champ. Velez is facing menacing and harassment charges, but his attorney insists the tape shows Tyson as the aggressor. "I think that the videotape reveals perfectly that not only did my client not motion to his waistband or the back of his shirt or back of his pants," Brown said. "But it also shows that while on his cell phone he was trying to get to an elevator so that behavior that was alleged by the [District Attorney] never occurred." Legal experts say the tape alone will not be enough for a jury to decide this case.
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Iron Mike Brawl Caught On TapeImages: Breakdown Of Mike Tyson BrawlWhat's clear on the security tape is that Mike Tyson is on the attack. What's not clear is what lead up to the brawl. Words were exchanged, but was the former heavyweight champ justified in using violence? The surveillance videotape, which was obtained by NewsChannel 4's Scott Weinberger, sheds new light on the Brooklyn brawl involving former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson. Tyson (dressed in all black in the video) throws what is thought to be the first punch knocking Samuel Velez, (dressed in a white sweat suit in the video) off of his feet. Then, as the boxer stands over Velez, Velez's wife tries to help her husband, but Tyson tosses her aside. He then leaves, while Velez's wife, picks up her stunned husband, who makes several attempts to get up. Seconds later, Tyson is back and once again, Velez is down for the count. A few more seconds pass, then Velez exits, but as he leaves, Tyson is seen making a dash across the hall, and another second camera captures another punch. Tyson's attorney, Mel Sachs, agreed to look at the security tape. "He was acting in self-defense," Sachs said. Sachs said that after Tyson refused to sign an autograph in front of the Brooklyn Marriott Hotel, he was threatened by Velez and Nestor Alvarez. "He was provoked by these two men, he was told 'you've got fists, we got guns,'" Sachs said. "This was coupled with their conduct where they were reaching for their waist as if they were reaching for guns." But prosecutors say there was no gun, and the attorney for Velez and Alverez, Earl Brown, said no such threat was ever made. No security cameras caught the action outside the hotel, but what the tape from the cameras inside does show is that his clients were being pursued by the former heavyweight champ. Velez is facing menacing and harassment charges, but his attorney insists the tape shows Tyson as the aggressor. "I think that the videotape reveals perfectly that not only did my client not motion to his waistband or the back of his shirt or back of his pants," Brown said. "But it also shows that while on his cell phone he was trying to get to an elevator so that behavior that was alleged by the [District Attorney] never occurred." Legal experts say the tape alone will not be enough for a jury to decide this case.
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