ST. GEORGE — A St. George man was arrested Wednesday for initiating an altercation between two teens over the weekend, one of whom was his daughter. The assault was captured on video that later surfaced and was handed over to police.
Taimi Taimi, 39, of St. George, was arrested and booked into jail in Washington County shortly after 2:15 p.m. Wednesday on a felony rioting offense as well as one count of threatening violence, a misdemeanor.
According to charging documents filed with the court, the arrest stems from an investigation that began Saturday when police were dispatched to a residence on 790 North on a call involving a fight in progress.
The altercation was over by the time officers arrived, but witnesses told police the fistfight, which involved two teenage girls, was set in motion when the suspect brought his daughter and several other family members to the home “just to fight,” the officer noted in the report.
When the homeowners attempted to break up the fight, the suspect allegedly encouraged his daughter to continue punching the other girl in the mouth. As the physical altercation continued, Taimi then attempted to start a fight with the homeowner.
Officers later went to the suspect’s residence and spoke with Taimi, who allegedly denied the allegations and told officers he took the girl there to pick up some property, but once they arrived, it was the other party that started the fight.
Through the course of the investigation, officers learned of a video that captured the altercation — footage that called the account the suspect provided to police into question.
While viewing the footage, officers could see several of the suspect’s family members in front of the residence where the altercation took place. The footage also showed the two teens fighting in the front yard, with the suspect’s daughter striking the other girl while sitting on top of her.
All the while, the suspect could be seen standing over the girls “encouraging” his daughter to continue hitting the teen in the mouth, the officer noted, and the video showed the prolonged efforts of the homeowners to break up the fight. At the same time, the couple was seen in the video disengaging from the suspect who was attempting to fight with both of them.
According to the report, the juvenile sustained multiple minor injuries during the assault.
The video also showed the group that accompanied the suspect standing in the middle of the street, with one of the members holding a cell phone to presumably record the altercation taking place in the yard.
After viewing the video, officers conducted a second interview with Taimi, who allegedly told them “he did not remember” telling his daughter to hit the other girl. When officers asked why the suspect tried to fight the homeowner who was trying to break up the altercation between the youths, Taimi allegedly responded by saying he felt threatened.
The suspect was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked on a third-degree felony count of rioting – bodily injury-property-damage-arson-dangerous weapon, and one misdemeanor count of threat of violence. He was released from custody after posting a bond on $5,010 bail.
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