‘Breathe!’ Police video shows Brandon Zapata in distress before death at La Gran Plaza
New video footage released Wednesday by Fort Worth police shows 20-year-old Brandon Zapata appeared to be in severe distress and asking for help from security personnel at La Gran Plaza before a struggle that ended in his death.
The April 11 incident at the shopping center was captured on video from multiple angles, including one that a bystander shared with the Star-Telegram on Tuesday.
In the new security video released by police, Zapata seemed to be in either physical or mental distress and was stumbling around near an entrance at the mall. In the 15 minutes before police arrived, an off-duty Fort Worth police officer employed by La Gran Plaza appeared to try to calm Zapata and get him to sit down. Then the officer and a security guard tried to restrain Zapata by the arms as he attempted to stand and grew more and more agitated.
It appears near the beginning of the video that Zapata had soiled himself, and soon after he can be seen pulling down his pants.
Minutes later Zapata lurched into the two men. Zapata and the security guard fell to the ground. Another man, who witnesses told the Star-Telegram was a passerby, approached and helped the two men subdue Zapata. Cellphone video from another angle, provided to the Star-Telegram by a bystander, shows the man and the off-duty officer kneeling on Zapata’s back at one point as they hold him down and try to handcuff him while he kicks his legs.
Fort Worth police officers arrived around this time and body-camera footage shows Zapata groaning on the floor while lying face-down with his hands restrained above his head in handcuffs. About a minute-and-a-half later, he appeared to stop moving or making sounds as officers worked to handcuff him behind his back. After he was cuffed, an officer sat Zapata up and told him to breathe and “wake up.”
“Breathe, breathe,” the officer can be heard saying. After realizing Zapata was not responding, officers removed the handcuffs, laid him on the floor and began CPR. The officers providing first aid say a couple of times that he has a pulse but it is weak. An officer is heard saying that he believes Zapata might have smoked something, and the officers attempt to give Zapata Narcan, the video shows.
Zapata’s family said they believe that security — including the off-duty Fort Worth police officer — used excessive force. Witnesses said Zapata was struggling to breathe, but his cause of death has not yet been determined.
Police said they released the portions of security and police body-camera video on Wednesday in an effort to be transparent.
In a news release accompanying the video, police said that the incident began when La Gran Plaza security guards noticed Zapata “causing a disturbance” near the mall’s carousel. Security guards saw Zapata “acting erratic” and requested assistance from a Fort Worth Police Department officer who was working there in an off-duty capacity, police said.
Irma, one of the employees at La Gran Plaza who witnessed the incident and who asked to be identified only by her first name, told the Star-Telegram that Zapata came in yelling and asking for help. He was pounding on his chest and said he couldn’t breathe, according to the witness.
Security guards and the off-duty Fort Worth police officer “attempted to provide Mr. Zapata with assistance, but Mr. Zapata became combative,” the police news release said. “To ensure the safety of patrons and Mr. Zapata, the FWPD officer and La Gran Plaza security personnel attempted to place Mr. Zapata in handcuffs. During this encounter, Mr. Zapata became unresponsive and officers immediately began providing emergency medical aid.”
Zapata’s family said they were told he died while still at the shopping center, but he was officially pronounced dead after he was transported to a hospital.
“The Fort Worth Police Department Major Case Unit is working hard to gather all available information about this incident,” police said. The completed investigation and evidence will be turned over to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office for review and presentation to a grand jury, which is the standard operating procedure of the department, police said.
On Tuesday, officials with the police department’s Major Case Unit met with Zapata’s family to review the available videos and answer their questions.
Police said they can’t comment on Zapata’s cause of death because the autopsy report is incomplete. But “preliminary information indicates Zapata experienced a medical emergency,” police said.
The following is a timeline of events based on preliminary information, according to police.
- The timestamp on the security video is incorrect, police said. The timestamp says 11:41 when Zapata first approaches the security guards but it appears that it is off by an hour and the time is about 12:41 p.m. when the video begins.
- At 12:48 p.m., the Fort Worth Police Department received a 911 call from a person reporting someone was fighting with a FWPD officer who was working at La Gran Plaza in an off-duty capacity. Police say mall security made the 911 call.
- FWPD officers were dispatched at 12:52 p.m.
- MedStar paramedics were notified at 12:53 p.m.
- FWPD officers arrived at 12:57 p.m. and found the off-duty officer inside the building with Zapata.
- At 12:58 p.m., Zapata became unresponsive and officers began CPR.
- Fearing Zapata might be under the influence of a narcotic, officers administered Narcan at 1:02 p.m.
- Officers continued to provide medical assistance to Zapata until Medstar personnel arrived on the scene and took over care at 1:05 p.m.
- Zapata was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced deceased by hospital personnel at 1:47 p.m.
Zapata’s mother, Gloria Ortiz, said her son suffered from asthma and didn’t have his inhaler with him. The family said that they believe Zapata’s erratic behavior was a result of an asthma attack, and that they were told he was asking for water. The family believes that the security officers’ actions may have impeded his breathing.
“He was obviously in severe distress,” said community activist Carlos Quintanilla, who went with the family to the police department Tuesday.
The family said they saw extensive bruising on Zapata’s back and shoulders when his body was brought to the funeral home.
The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy but has not yet reported its findings on Zapata’s cause or manner of death. Zapata’s family said they haven’t seen the results of the autopsy or the toxicology report, but they are having a private autopsy done.
A spokesperson for the security office at La Gran Plaza told the Star-Telegram that the mall employs off-duty Fort Worth police officers in uniform to act as mall police. They are intended to act as a deterrent to criminal activity, the spokesperson said. The mall employs security officers in addition to the police.
Mall security declined to comment about the incident because of the ongoing investigation.
The Major Case Unit asked that anyone who witnessed the incident or has video to call investigators at 817-392-4438.
This story was originally published April 19, 2023 at 4:44 PM.
