SURFSIDE, Fla. – Former Surfside Commissioner Eliana Salzhauer says her son’s arrest after being accused of battering a current commissioner after a meeting Wednesday was politically motivated.
Salzhauer is known as a vocal critic of the town’s current administration and is the mother of Joshua Epstein.
Surfside police arrested Epstein, 18, on a felony charge of battery on an elected official Friday after they said he pushed Vice Mayor Jeffrey Rose after a commission candidate forum.
Video of the aftermath was shared around social media. However, police said no video of the alleged incident exists.
“Keep pushing me. You already pushed me once -- you do it again and see what happens,” Rose is heard saying in the video.
“I haven’t touched you,” Epstein replied.
Salzhauer told Local 10 News her son is innocent and his arrest was the result of “unchecked power in town hall.”
“This is Third World thuggery,” she said. “To use the police force to silence an opponent is something we see happen in Russia.”
“Has he ever been arrested before?” Local 10 News reporter Rosh Lowe asked Salzhauer.
“Of course not,” she said. “He’s an honors student.”
In a statement Monday, a Surfside town spokesperson said in part that “a thorough police investigation was conducted, and the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office was consulted prior to an arrest being made due to the sensitivity of the matter.”
Local 10 News contacted Rose seeking comment and had not received a response as of Monday afternoon.
“I’m not going to stop,” Salzhauer said. “They need to be accountable for what they did to my son. He’s never gonna get that 27 hours (in jail back). Do you know how many years that took off my life?”
Epstein was later released from the Miami-Dade jail on his own recognizance after appearing in front of a bond court judge.