POMPANO BEACH, Fla. -- A 19-year-old present during the fatal beating of a Wilton Manors man in April was also involved in the filmed attack of a homeless man in Pompano Beach last year, according to the Broward Sheriff's Office.
That man, Brandon Edwards, of Fort Lauderdale, turned himself in to authorities Monday night. Information about the charges against him was not available.
Edwards, seen taunting and harassing an intoxicated man on a video posted to YouTube, was present when three friends attacked Craig Cohen and David Villanova near an Oakland Park diner on April 6, according to court records. Villanova survived, but Cohen slipped into a coma and died from his injuries earlier this month. Edwards was not charged in that case.
On Monday, the Sheriff's Office also arrested the accused filmmaker in the Pompano Beach beating, William Sleight, 19, of Deerfield Beach. He's being held without bond at the Broward Main Jail on one count of battery and one count of false imprisonment.
Officials said they are looking for two others they say are shown on the video: Nicholas Bakum, 19, of Lighthouse Point, and an accomplice identified only as Brad.
The assault happened in early July 2008 outside the Blue Sky Motel, in the 500 block of South Ocean Boulevard, according to the Sheriff's Office.
While Sleight recorded on his phone's camera, his friends surrounded and taunted an apparently intoxicated man identified as James Cunningham, 54, officials said. State records show Cunningham's last known address was in Coral Springs.
The video shows the teens knocking Cunningham to the ground and later slapping him. At one point they grab his limbs and drag him across the asphalt.
"You got this?" one of the teens asks.
"I got everything, bro," says a voice from behind the camera, which officials have identified as Sleight.
In January, the teens posted the video in two parts on the popular website Youtube.com under the name "Beating up crackhead." Officials discovered the attack while investigating the April assaults.
Tipsters led detectives to Edwards, who told them he was present during both Oakland Park beatings, according to court records. He then gave them the names of the others who were there that night and said they were the ones who pummeled the victims, authorities said.
According to court records, there were six people present during those attacks. Only three of them have been charged: Victor Gonzalez, 22; Pargu Leandro, 21; and Chad Olah, 18.
Authorities ask anyone with information on the Pompano Beach assault to call Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at 954-493-TIPS (8477).
Joel Marino can be reached at jmarino@SunSentinel.com or 954-356-4552.
That man, Brandon Edwards, of Fort Lauderdale, turned himself in to authorities Monday night. Information about the charges against him was not available.
Edwards, seen taunting and harassing an intoxicated man on a video posted to YouTube, was present when three friends attacked Craig Cohen and David Villanova near an Oakland Park diner on April 6, according to court records. Villanova survived, but Cohen slipped into a coma and died from his injuries earlier this month. Edwards was not charged in that case.
On Monday, the Sheriff's Office also arrested the accused filmmaker in the Pompano Beach beating, William Sleight, 19, of Deerfield Beach. He's being held without bond at the Broward Main Jail on one count of battery and one count of false imprisonment.
Officials said they are looking for two others they say are shown on the video: Nicholas Bakum, 19, of Lighthouse Point, and an accomplice identified only as Brad.
The assault happened in early July 2008 outside the Blue Sky Motel, in the 500 block of South Ocean Boulevard, according to the Sheriff's Office.
While Sleight recorded on his phone's camera, his friends surrounded and taunted an apparently intoxicated man identified as James Cunningham, 54, officials said. State records show Cunningham's last known address was in Coral Springs.
The video shows the teens knocking Cunningham to the ground and later slapping him. At one point they grab his limbs and drag him across the asphalt.
"You got this?" one of the teens asks.
"I got everything, bro," says a voice from behind the camera, which officials have identified as Sleight.
In January, the teens posted the video in two parts on the popular website Youtube.com under the name "Beating up crackhead." Officials discovered the attack while investigating the April assaults.
Tipsters led detectives to Edwards, who told them he was present during both Oakland Park beatings, according to court records. He then gave them the names of the others who were there that night and said they were the ones who pummeled the victims, authorities said.
According to court records, there were six people present during those attacks. Only three of them have been charged: Victor Gonzalez, 22; Pargu Leandro, 21; and Chad Olah, 18.
Authorities ask anyone with information on the Pompano Beach assault to call Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at 954-493-TIPS (8477).
Joel Marino can be reached at jmarino@SunSentinel.com or 954-356-4552.
