Cops Beat Up Innocent Man Out For Snack In WaHi, $4M Lawsuit Says

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — A man who said cops beat him up as he was walking to get a midnight snack has filed a $4 million lawsuit against the NYPD and the officers involved, records show.

Mark Polanco landed in the emergency room scratched and bruised last April after cops who mistook him for someone else handcuffed him, slammed his head into a door and pushed him to the ground in front of Cafe Bark on West 181st Street, the lawsuit claims.

The encounter, which he claims violated his civil rights, has left him traumatized and nervous every time he sees police even a year later, his attorney Steven Hoffner said.

"The cops acted inappropriately at every aspect," said Hoffner, who filed the suit last week. "He was not treated with any type of respect."

The police, most of whom are only identified as John Doe in the suit, swarmed Polanco in five police cars near the 833 West 181st St. cafe as he was walking there for a late night snack just before midnight, the lawsuit says.

The officers quickly handcuffed Polanco after asking his name and telling him that they were looking for a man who threatened to kill himself by jumping off a bridge, the lawsuit said.

"For the record, there was no bridge in sight," the lawsuit reads. "The officers told [Polanco] that the person they were looking for was reported to be wearing a brown coat. [Polanco] was wearing a gray sweater."

Polanco, who didn't have his I.D. on him, had the cops call his mother to prove that he wasn't the suicidal man they were looking for, the lawsuit said.

But as one of the cops talked with his mom, another officer started roughing Polanco up because he was "moving around too much" and wouldn't sit down, the lawsuit claims. That officer is identified only as Officer Neville.

"Officer Neville pushed [Polanco] forcefully into the doorway, causing his head to slam into the front door of Cafe Bark," the lawsuit reads. "Then, he pushed [Polanco] to the ground ,which caused [him] to sustain an injury to his hip when he landed on the front stoop of the restaurant."

The cops, who didn't charge Polanco with anything, ended up releasing him just minutes later.

The officers had emergency responders look at Polanco's injuries and even offered to take him to the hospital, but Polanco refused and instead went to the NYPD Precinct to complain about the cops. Police there called Polanco an ambulance and had him taken to the emergency room.

He would eventually go home after waiting for hours to see a doctor, but was still left traumatized even after the scratches and bruises healed, Hoffner said.

"He’s traumatized to dealing with police," the attorney said. "He has apprehension whenever he sees cops."

The $4-million lawsuit lists six claims, including assault and battery, against the officers and the NYPD, arguing that both Officer Neville and the other cops had multiple opportunities to let Polanco go peacefully.

When asked for comment about the lawsuit, the city's Law Department said they will review the complaint and "respond accordingly."

“The mere filing of a lawsuit does not mean a case has merit," a spokesperson said.