MIAMI – A 26-year-old man was arrested Monday after police said he assaulted a manager at a theater and resisted officers who tried to take him into custody.
Officers with the Miami Police Department said they responded just before 6 p.m. to reports of a trespasser attacking people at the Manuel Artime Theater, located at 900 SW First St. in the city’s Little Havana neighborhood.
5 p.m. report:
The SJ Dance Company told Local 10 News that they had rented the space for a children’s rehearsal that included dancers as young as 2 and as old as 12.
“We were in the middle of rehearsal with about 50 young dancers,” said SJ Dance Company owner Katerina San Juan Rodriguez. “Thankfully, teachers were with the kids and a few parents were standing nearby.”
When they arrived, police said they were flagged down by San Juan Rodriguez, who pointed out the suspect walking away from the scene.
“He said something to the parents, kind of off, and then mentioned, ‘Oh, are you scared of me?’ That’s when they realized they needed to alert the theater,” she said. “Another mom ran to get staff.”
Officers identified the man as Manuel Arturo Baldizon Sarria and attempted to detain him, but police said he resisted arrest by tensing up and pulling away. Authorities said he was eventually taken into custody after a brief struggle.
San Juan Rodriguez said Baldizon Sarria bizarre behavior escalated quickly. She recalled him approaching her colleague and saying, “Which kid is up for adoption?”
“We were very thrown off (by) that statement” she said. “So she started pushing the kids further back, moving them to the next row. They were all in the row of the seats waiting to start rehearsal.”
San Juan Rodriguez confronted him, telling him the event was private and asking him to leave. She said he refused, making increasingly unsettling comments, including claims that he was looking for a daughter and that his children had been aborted.
“He said something like, ‘Help me, my children have been aborted, I’m looking for my 12-year-old daughter,’” she said. “Then he told me, ‘My grandfather built this,’ and I told him, ‘You can explain it to the police. I’m already on the phone with 911.’”
Police said Baldizon Sarria refused to leave and escalated the confrontation by slapping the manager twice in the face, knocking off the victim’s glasses.
A witness used a city-issued emergency radio to contact dispatch directly, prompting a police response.
“Once we got the door shut, I didn’t know how to lock it. A theater staff member helped lock it from the inside,” San Juan Rodriguez said. “In the times that we are in today, I didn’t know if he had a weapon on him. I was scared. I had 50 little girls behind me.”
Surveillance video reviewed by detectives confirmed the victim’s and witness’s accounts, according to the report.
Parents and staff acted swiftly, calling 911 and physically blocking the doors until help arrived.
“It was definitely a team effort,” she said. “The parents outside were acting quickly. They were also on the phone with 911. The parent inside ran to get the staff and everyone worked to together to get him out.”
Jail records show Baldizon Sarria is facing one count each of burglary with assault or battery and resisting an officer without violence.
Authorities said he declined to speak with investigators after invoking his rights at the police station. Officers noted that he showed no signs of intoxication.
Going forward, San Juan Rodriguez said her company is taking additional safety precautions.
“We’re writing an email to the theater. If they are not providing security, than we need to do something on our end.” she said. “We don’t mind paying for security. We have a show this Friday, and we want to make sure the stage door remains locked.”
As of Tuesday, Baldizon Sarria is being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
He was also issued a no-contact order and ordered to stay away from the victims and the theater.
In court, another open case for Baldizon Sarria was brought up.
Police accuse him of exposing himself to a woman he followed into a Miami apartment building less than six months ago.
Because of that case, the judge did not want to grant house arrest.
Read the city of Miami’s response to Baldizon Sarria’s arrest here:
