Six British soldiers have been charged after an off-duty New York policeman was beaten up in a bar brawl after making alleged racial comments.
The Daily Mail reports that the accused are from Fiji but are based in Edinburgh and were on an Army rugby tour of the US.
One of them is accused of snatching the police officer's phone as he called for help.
The men had just played the NYPD as part of their rugby tour.
A court in Manhattan heard that the soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland allegedly punched the officer to the floor then carried on hitting him as his friend tried to stop them.
As the brawl carried on down the street, it left blood splattered along half a block until the officer pulled out a knife and slashed one of his attackers.
The soldiers - Private Iliakini Raderua, Corporal Thomas Shute, Private Filipe Vunisarati, Private Mosese Kuruala and Private Joeli Raduva are accused of third degree assault.
Lance Corporal Iosefo Yavala is also accused of second degree robbery, a more serious offence, after he was allegedly found carrying the officer's mobile phone which was taken during the brawl.
The soldiers, whose regimental motto is No One Provokes Me With Impunity, are now being held in the notorious Rikers Island prison after failing to post bail of USD$25,000.
Prosecutor Emily Logue said that the row began at the Mercury Bar in Manhattan when Yavala bumped into the victim and began yelling at him.
Seema Iyer, defending five of the soldiers, asked that they be released as they are upstanding members of the armed services in their country with no criminal records.
It was revealed that Yavala has been in the Army for 11 years, Shute is a 12-year veteran and Raduva has served 13 years and is a decorated war hero who was Mentioned in Dispatches in 2011.
All six men will appear before the court again next week.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said ‘All those who are found to fall short of the Army’s high standards will face disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.’
Story by: Vijay Narayan
