NEW YORK, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- The Staten Island resident who shot the video of an NYPD officer putting Eric Garner in a fatal chokehold was arrested Saturday, says the NYPD.
Ramsey Orta was arrested after plainclothes narcotic officers allegedly observed him slipping a .25-caliber handgun into a 17-year-old girl's waistband. The gun was reported stolen in Michigan in 2007. Orta was charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon.
Emily Mercado, Orta's mother, said the NYPD has been following her son since Garner's death.
"They've been following him. They've been sitting in front of my house, putting the spotlights in my window," said Mercado.
Orta has a previous weapons conviction on his record which prohibits him from possessing a firearm. He is also facing previous charges for assault and robbery. Orta was taken to the hospital for a reported panic attack following his arrest.
