$300K settlement reached after cop punched man 12 times in the back of the head
Updated Feb 09, 2021;
The Camden man seen on a viral video being punched 12 times in the back of the head by a now ex-cop during a 2018 arrest will get a $300,000 settlement to resolve his civil rights lawsuit against the officer.
Edward Minguela, now 35, was surrounded by police and had his hands up on Feb. 22, 2018 when then-officer Nicholas Romantino threw him to the ground and punched him repeatedly. Police had received an erroneous 911 call claiming Minguela had a gun, but no weapon was found, authorities said.
Romantino, 27, who maintained that Minguela was pulling his hands away and thus resisting arrest, was placed on unpaid leave. He was eventually tried twice and eventually acquitted of excessive force charges by a federal jury in 2019. He resigned from the Camden County Police Department while the department was in the process of terminating him, according to county spokesman Dan Keashen.