A California cop caught on camera kicking a teenager suspected of shoplifting in the face has been charged with assault — three years after a viral in-store melee.
Gonzalo Zendejas, 39, faces one count of assault under color of authority for the June 2021 beatdown, which happened after he and other officers were called to a Dick’s Sporting Goods in Glendale on a report that the 17-year-old suspect had swiped items elsewhere in the Glendale Galleria mall, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The 17-year-old was suspected of theft inside a Dick’s Sporting Goods. InstagramThree plainclothes cops — along with one in uniform — pounced on the teen and rained punches down upon him as he was pinned to the ground, video of the incident first obtained by CBS shows.
Glendale cop Gonzalo Zendejas has been charged with assault for kicking a teen suspect in the face during a 2021 arrest. X/Imposter_Edits
The audible blows to the suspect’s face prompted gasps from witnesses inside the store. InstagramThe Glendale Police Department put all four officers on administrative leave after the shocking attack.
But Zendejas — who at one point in the video kicked the juvenile square in the face — is the only one still sidelined, according to a department spokesman.
The other three returned to work after being cleared, the spokesperson said.
The witness who recorded the incident said the officer who kicked the teen “wasn’t even there to begin with.” Instagram
The suspect was found with stolen merchandise, cops said at the time. X/Imposter_Edits“While police officers face an extraordinarily challenging and demanding job while working to protect our communities, this responsibility does not excuse actions that endanger others or undermine public trust,” District Attorney George Gascón said in a statement.
“This incident is a serious violation of the duty to serve with integrity and respect.”
Zendejas could face up to three years in prison if convicted, the Times said. He has not appeared in court yet.
Stolen merchandise was found on the young man, who was charged with petty theft and resisting an officer by force following the June 5 incident, cops said at the time.
But he did not seem to be resisting when the cops teed off on him.
“The officer that wasn’t even there to begin with, that ran up on this situation, and as soon as he arrived, he just decided, ‘I’m going to kick this kid in the face,’” a witness told CBS Los Angeles at the time.
The four officers involved in the incident have been placed on administrative leave — but three were cleared to return to duty afterward. InstagramThe teen reportedly had injuries to his head and eye after the beating.
Meanwhile, the suspect’s sister said she couldn’t get the footage out of her head.
“It was really hard to watch,” Melissa Navarette told CBS Los Angeles at the time. “We got traumatized. We still have, like, all of the video stuck in our head.”
Glendale police brass told ABC 7 earlier this week that its internal investigation “remains ongoing,” since the outcome was dependent on finishing the criminal investigation.
But it has already given the local district attorney all the necessary reports, statements and video because it wanted to be “fully transparent and assist in a complete and thorough investigation of the facts and evidence surrounding the incident.”
