It was three days before Christmas when Tyrone Phifer, a then-60-year-old Black man, was assaulted, abused and arrested by police in New York after they said he “fit the description” of another Black man named “Leroy” — who was 20 years his junior. And even when a Nassau County police officer confirmed Phifer’s identification within one minute of confronting him — even addressing him by his first name multiple times — they continued to arrest him. The police incompetence became even more evident when it was revealed the man they were looking for was not even named Leroy but Wilfred Elwin. And their dishonesty became evident through the body camera footage that contradicted statements cops made to prosecutors. Tyrone Phifer was 60 years old when he was arrested by Nassau County police officers in Long Island, New York who were looking for another Black man 20 years younger. Phifer filed a lawsuit last month. (Photo: Police body camera) Last month, Phifer filed a lawsuit against the Nassau County Police Department and the officers involved in his arrest, including Sgt. Daniel Imondi, police officers Patrick McGrath, Quinn R. Knauer and Richard J. Fosbeck as well as Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick J. Ryder. The lawsuit filed by Nassau County attorney Frederick K. Brewington in the Eastern District of New York accuses the police department of having a long history of racial profiling. According to available data in Nassau County … Black people are subject to traffic stops at 3.1 times the rate of white people; Black people are subject to Terry Stops at 4.7 times the rate of white people; and Black people are subject to being frisked at 6.8 times the rate of white people. The lawsuit states that 3,656 Black people were arrested in Nassau in 2021, compared with 3,400 white people — even though Black people make up only 10.6 percent of the county’s population. The Arrest The incident took place on Dec. 22, 2021, after Phifer had walked out of Baldwin Foot Care carrying an umbrella and two brown paper bags, which included medical prescriptions and Christmas cookies, given to him by the staff at the doctor’s office. “Let’s stop the bullsh–, Leroy,” said one of the cops. “You know what you did.” “Who? Me?” responded Phifer. “Yeah, you, you know you beat up the woman.” Sgt. Imondi then grabbed the umbrella and bags out of Phifer’s hands and tossed them on the ground. He then picked up a prescription that showed the man’s name was Tyrone Phifer, not Leroy or Wilfred Elwin. “What’s important for you to know is that within 44 seconds of this video, they knew he was not the person they were looking for,” attorney Brewington told local media in a press conference last month. The body camera video shows Phifer telling the cops, “You got the wrong person,” as he was on the ground. “I understand that,” one of the cops responds, acknowledging the mistake but proceeding with the arrest anyway. The cops then tried to cover up for themselves by accusing Phifer of attacking them, making them fear for his safety, when it is obvious from the video that the only person fearing for his safety was Phifer. “When I tried to talk to you, you tried to swing,” Imondi told Phifer. “No, I didn’t!” Phifer responded. The body camera footage shows the cops insinuating he has mental issues when it is evident he was just angry at being accosted under false circumstances. The lawsuit accuses the cops of further fabricating a story by telling prosecutors the following: “They asked him to put the umbrella down and refused to comply with Sergeant Imondi’s verbal commands and still refusing to give identification and now became combative and more animated with his hands. For officer’s safety, Sergeant Imondi attempted to remove the umbrella from arrestee’s left hand when arrestee pulled back the umbrella, Sergeant Imondi was able to remove the umbrella from defendant’s left hand, the arrestee immediately went after Sergeant Imondi …” After they had him restrained, police acknowledged they had the wrong guy, and they tried to justify their actions by telling him he “fit the description” of the man they were looking for. “So every Black man fits the f–king description?” Phifer responded. Phifer was charged with obstruction of governmental administration, and it took 10 months for the charges to be dropped. He was arrested a little after 10 a.m., then transported to a local hospital where he says he remained handcuffed to a gurney until 8 p.m. Phifer, now 63, says he was left traumatized by the incident and can no longer go to medical appointments or shop for groceries without family members.  “I thought I was really going to be hurt, or accused of something they knew I didn’t do,” Phifer told Newsday. “It really bothered me.” The lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District of New York, accuses the cops of fabricating evidence, false arrest, malicious prosecution, abuse of process and failure to intervene, the latter count referring to the cops who showed up as he was being abused and either stood by to watch or joined in the abuse. “That morning was the worst day of my life,” Phifer said in a press conference last month.  “I feared for my life,” further elaborated the National Guard veteran and grandfather of eight. ‘So Every Black Man Fits the F–king Description?’: New York Grandfather Slammed to Ground, Arrested on Claims He Was Mistaken for Man 20 Years Younger