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Clearwater police: Man charged in July attack on soccer referee

 
Published Sept. 14, 2012

CLEARWATER — On the run after punching a soccer referee in the head during a July game, two men eluded police, who thought the players gave fake names on their club registrations.

Well, police arrested a man Thursday who they say confessed to the incident. Ramon Mitchell, 25, of Tampa, was booked into the Pinellas County jail on a felony battery charge.

That's the name the soccer league first provided to police after the men fled the Joe DiMaggio Sports Complex, 2450 Drew St. But police later thought it was a fake name and released the names of two other soccer players as suspects.

"There was a lot of confusion," said Clearwater spokeswoman Joelle Castelli. "There was a language barrier."

She said Mitchell is the only suspect in the attack, which caused referee Rafael Serrano to fall and suffer a separated shoulder.