Nation Of Islam Leader Arrested During Vigil

NBC:

A crowd cheered and gathered around Nation of Islam minister Tony Muhammad as he left the LAPD's 77th Division after being released on $20,000 bail early Friday.

Muhammad was arrested Thursday night for allegedly hitting a police officer during a confrontation at a vigil for a man who had been fatally shot the night before in Hyde Park. The vigil was held at the scene of the shooting, at 63rd Street and 10th Avenue. After that shooting, onlookers had become outraged when paramedics put a sheet over a Nahun Beiard, a 21-year-old victim who appeared to be alive. The Fire Department said paramedics tried to revive the man because the angry crowd was demanding it, but there was no mistake. They said the man was already dead but may have had an involuntary reflex that caused his body to move.

Police say Muhammad became belligerent and uncooperative after officers asked for two SUVs parked in the middle of 10th Avenue to be removed. When officers tried to take Muhammad into custody, they said, two bodyguards attacked them, and about 100 officers responded to the scene. The bodyguards, who remained behind bars after Muhammad's release, were identified by police as Marcus Mohammed and Steven Mohammed. Both face possible charges of resisting or obstructing an officer.

"During the struggle with the minister and bodyguards, two Astro radios that officers carry on their belts, along with a flashlight were stolen," a police spokesman said. "One officer had the name tag on his shirt ripped off his body, and two officers received minor injuries."

Another unrelated shooting took place at a nearby apartment complex at about 5 p.m. Thursday, and although nobody was hurt in that shooting, officers responding to the confrontation at the vigil were put on tactical alert to control the crowd. Helmeted officers blocked off streets and ordered residents to go back home.

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