SUNNY ISLES BEACH, Fla. – A Sunny Isles Beach man is facing three felony charges after the city’s police department said he pulled a gun on a disabled scooter rider while pretending to be a New York City police officer. They said the BMW driver then knocked the amputee to the ground by kicking his scooter.
Police arrested John Anthony Lora on Friday. They said the 41-year-old wasn’t even supposed to be behind the wheel in the first place — and knew it.
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According to Sunny Isles Beach police, the apparent road rage incident happened just before 5:30 p.m. Thursday in the 16900 block of Collins Avenue.
An arrest report states that the victim told investigators that he noticed an “aggressive driver,” later identified as Lora, tailgating him in a black BMW 528i. Police said he asked Lora to “back off,” leading to the confrontation.
Lora, police said, went up to the victim, pulled out a Smith & Wesson 9 mm pistol, “pointed it at him and threatened to kill him.”
Police said he also “identified himself as a New York City police officer and showed him a badge.”
The report states that he then kicked the scooter, causing the victim, who uses a prosthetic leg, to fall to the ground.
“Multiple witnesses” backed up the victim’s account, police said.
Police said the next day, they saw Lora — who has a suspended license — driving his BMW in the same area and took him into custody.
Authorities said they found the gun in his center console after Lora gave them consent to search the vehicle.
The report states that during an interview at the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department, Lora claimed that the victim hit him with his scooter and was the one who claimed to be a police officer, stating he felt “threatened” after the victim told him, “You don’t know who you’re messing with.”
Lora, police said, “maintained that he did not take out his handgun and left it in the back seat of his car.”
“However, he later changed his story, stating that he did take out his handgun but never directly pointed it at the victim,” the report states.
An alleged subsequent admission was redacted from the report.
Police arrested Lora on charges of impersonating a law enforcement officer in the commission of a felony, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and battery on a person with a mental or physical disability.
The report states he was also cited for knowingly driving with a suspended license.
As of Monday, he remained in the Metrowest Detention Center on a $12,500 bond. According to jail records, if released, he’ll be required to be on house arrest with GPS monitoring.