MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Armando Fogaça, a Brazilian-born personal trainer and fitness influencer with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, was arrested Monday after authorities said he hit a Miami Beach police motorman and fled onto the MacArthur Causeway, where he wrecked into a vehicle at speed.
The 37-year-old South Beach resident ― seen in videos posted to the platform using his strength to crush watermelons and bend cooking pans ― is now facing the weight of the law. He cried while appearing in court on Tuesday.
4 p.m. report:
According to an arrest report, the officer was at Fifth Street and Lenox Avenue just before 9 a.m. when Fogaça, on a silver Triumph motorcycle with his wife, made an illegal right turn on red.
Police said the officer stepped out in traffic to stop Fogaça and ordered him to pull over. The report states Fogaça initially stopped, but then “accelerated” and hit the motorman, knocking him to the ground, then fled onto the causeway.
His attorney claimed in court that he did not mean to hit the officer.
They said the officer had to be treated for injuries at a local hospital.
“The officer sustained fractured ribs, abrasions and bruising throughout his body,” Miami-Dade Judge Mindy Glazer said in court Tuesday.
It states that he used the bicycle lane to pass other vehicles, ran the red light at Palm Island, then crashed into a vehicle near the west bridge.
According to the report, Fogaça’s wife, who was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center after being thrown off the bike, told officers that “they were traveling between 80-100 mph before the crash into the vehicle by the Parrot Jungle.”
Police said Fogaça has no driver’s license, just a Brazilian passport.
Miami Beach police arrested Fogaça on charges of leaving the scene of a crash causing serious bodily injury, driving without a license causing serious injury, fleeing and eluding an officer and reckless driving causing serious bodily injury, all felonies. He was also charged with aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer.
Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne Jones issued the following statement on Tuesday:
“Yesterday, while conducting a traffic enforcement detail, a veteran Miami Beach police motorman was struck by a hit-and-run driver. The motorman attempted to initiate a traffic stop on a vehicle occupied by two individuals. Rather than comply, the driver intentionally struck the motorman and fled the scene. Our injured officer was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital, and the subject was arrested shortly thereafter. This incident serves as a stark reminder of the inherent dangers our officers face each day while serving the community. We are grateful that our motorman is on the path to recovery and is now home with the support of his loved ones. Let me be clear—anyone who harms one of my officers or endangers the safety of the Miami Beach community will be held accountable. There is zero tolerance for those who threaten the well-being of our city.”
As of late Tuesday morning, the influencer ― who has a prominent neck tattoo reading “NO EASY WAY OUT” ― was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
He was ordered held without bond owing to the aggravated battery charge. He also remained behind bars on an immigration hold, records show.
Editor’s note: This article’s headline was amended to read “5 felonies” after an additional charge was added to jail records.