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Man accused of assaulting and badly injuring soldier appears in court
The man accused of attacking army soldier Adam McClure appeared in court for the first time on Friday. FOX 10's Justin Lum reports.
PHOENIX - The man accused of attacking army soldier Adam McClure appeared in court for the first time on Friday.
Ricky Soqui, 32, was arrested on Thursday after police say several tips from the public came in.
Soqui's family had no comment on his arrest, but FOX 10 has learned, through court documents, that Soqui told police someone inside the restaurant where the fight happened made racist comments, leading to the confrontation with McClure.
"In the media, my client has been judged, convicted, and essentially condemned," said the defense attorney, in court.
Soqui's attorney said his client turned himself in Thursday afternoon to Glendale Police, knowing he’d be arrested for aggravated assault and disorderly conduct. Police officials said on the early morning of August 17, Soqui followed McClure, 27, into a restaurant parking lot after already taking a swing at him inside the restaurant. Moments later. witnesses tell police Soqui punched McClure in the face, causing him to hit his head on the ground and go unconscious. McClure remains in the hospital with neurological damage.
"He had no idea the injured individual's face was injured, and found out about it the same way other people did, by watching TV," said the defense attorney.
Surveillance video from inside the restaurant show the confrontation between Soqui and McClure. According to the prosecutor, the images gave Soqui's identity away.
"He self-surrendered 12 days after this offense is alleged to have occurred, and that he only did so after his image was all over the news," said the prosecutor.
Police officials said Soqui told detectives in an interview that he heard racist comments being made inside the restaurant before losing control and confronting McClure. The name of the person Soqui accused of being racist is redacted from court documents.
"Mr. Soqui has lived in this area for pretty much his entire life," said the defense attorney. "He’s got long ties to the community. He’s got one prior brush with the law from when he was 19 years old."
Soqui’s bond is set at $5,000, and if he makes bail, he will have to be outfitted with electronic monitoring. His next court date is September 6.
Ricky Soqui