BUFFALO, NY-- Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz is speaking out about an incident involving an Erie County Sheriff's Office deputy and a Bills' fan who was arrested and suffered injuries.
Nicholas Belsito was arrested at Bills' game last year and suffered serious injures, allegedly at the hands of an Erie County Sheriff's deputy.
Erie County District Attorney John Flynn revealed Monday that he's now investigating the claim that the deputy falsified his incident report about Belsito's arrest.
Poloncarz posted on his public Facebook page that he supports the District Attorney's investigation and that if any sheriff's deputy lies, they should not be wearing a badge.
"If any sheriff's deputy lies to create an evidentiary premise for an arrest they should not be wearing a badge representing the people of our county. A full, open investigation into this matter should commence and I support the DA's actions," said Poloncarz on social media.
Belsito claims when he went to inquire about the fate of a friend, and fellow UB student who'd been arrested while tailgating, when a deputy then set upon him, giving him a concussion and breaking his nose before charging Belsito with obstructing justice and disorderly conduct, charges that were eventually dropped by prosecutors.
A judge ruled recently the UB student can proceed with his claim against the Erie County Sheriff's office. In court papers, the lawyer for Belsito indicates he plans to use footage from another deputy's body camera to back his claim that his client was unnecessarily arrested and brutalized.