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The timing could hardly be worse: Just two days after Manager of Safety Stephanie O’Malley fired Denver deputies Thomas Ford and Edward Keller after they were caught on video using excessive force against prisoners, a new clip has surfaced showing another deputy, Roberto Roena, unleashing taekwondo moves on an inmate.
Roena, who’s also a taekwondo instructor, has been suspended for ninety days due to his actions. Get details and see the footage and additional images below.
See also: Denver Fires Deputies Thomas Ford and Edward Keller for Inmate Attacks
Roena’s Facebook page features portraits like this one….
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…and this one…. …plus numerous taekwondo-related pics featuring him with young students, as well as the full-size version of the cropped image at the top of this post: Back in April, as seen in this screen capture from a video obtained by CBS4, Roena was showing off his taekwondo kicks for fellow deputies at the Downtown Detention Center…. …when a nearby inmate apparently began giving him lip. Roena responded physically, precipitating a scuffle, with other deputies ultimately having to separate the two of them.
Afterward, Roena reportedly claimed that the inmate had initiated the contact — something the video clearly shows wasn’t true. As such, CBS4 notes that Roena drew a ninety-day suspension for his actions — and for not initially telling the truth about them.
While the video is not nearly as violent as those that prompted the firings of Ford and Keller, it hardly presents a positive image of the deputies working at the detention center. Here’s the CBS4 piece:
Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
