Two of the three suspects facing misdemeanor assault charges after a group of white men attacked a Black dockworker in a brawl on the Montgomery riverfront have yet to turn themselves in to police as of Wednesday morning, a police spokesperson told NBC News.
As of 9:50 a.m. local time, the two suspects had not presented themselves to police, said Major Saba Coleman, public information officer for the Montgomery Police Department. At a press conference Tuesday, Montgomery Police Chief Darryl J. Albert said they were expected to turn themselves in that afternoon, and one of the men was already in custody, although it was unclear who.
The three suspects facing charges — Richard Roberts, 48; Allen Todd, 23; and Zachery Shipman, 25 — are all white men, Albert said.
Police have not publicly identified the two suspects who remain at large, but a mugshot Coleman provided on Tuesday shows that Roberts has already turned himself in.
Efforts to reach Todd and Shipman, and their immediate family members, were unsuccessful Wednesday morning.
It was not immediately clear if they have lawyers.
Coleman did not immediately respond to questions Wednesday.
Police are expected to bring more charges in the incident, but hate crime charges are not expected to be among them, Albert previously said.
In an appearance on MSNBC Wednesday morning, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed said the two suspects “should be coming in hopefully before the end of the day.”
Reed said officials are “very intently looking at all facets of this case,” including allegations that racial slurs were used in the altercation.
“To see something like this happen in our city is problematic,” Reed added.
Police confirmed that a group of white private boaters attacked a Black dockworker, Damien Pickett, as he tried to move their pontoon to as the Harriott II Riverboat approached. More than 200 passengers on the riverboat waited for about a half hour as the captain and Pickett tried to get the boaters to move their vessel.
Family members of a teenage white dockworker are also calling for charges after he was attacked by white boaters while operating a nearby vessel.
Videos of the fight went viral online following the incident, with several social media users pointing out that the people involved appeared to be split along racial lines.
Police ultimately detained, questioned and released 13 people, the police chief said, adding that local FBI and district attorney’s offices are part of the ongoing investigation.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
