MIAMI (WSVN) – A man, who was cleared of a crime that kept him behind bars awaiting trial for nearly two years, has been freed, and along with his attorney is taking action against the police department that locked him up.<\/p>\n
Simeon Boykins and his attorney, Stephan Lopez, say he was falsely arrested for a crime he didn\u2019t commit.<\/p>\n
A week after walking free after his charges were dropped, the duo is speaking to 7News, where they said they are suing the Opa-locka Police Department.<\/p>\n
\u201cI know for sure I didn\u2019t do it. I was at the house,\u201d said Boykins in an interview with 7News.<\/p>\n
Opa-locka Police officers showed up to Boykins\u2019 home in June 2024 with their guns drawn to make an arrest. According to police, he was being accused of attempted murder and other offenses.<\/p>\n
Body camera footage captures officers entering the home.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolice department! Police Department,\u201d yelled the officers.<\/p>\n
Boykins said he was detained in mere seconds.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018Put your hands up!\u2019 Put me on the ground, handcuffed me,\u201d he told 7News as he recalled his arrest.<\/p>\n
He says when officers showed up at his home to take him in, he asked them: \u201cWhat am I being charged with? What did I do?\u201d<\/p>\n
According to police, Boykins pistol-whipped, robbed, and shot a man in the area of Northwest 31st Avenue and 134th Street.<\/p>\n
During the interrogation of Boykins, police told him they had video evidence as well as victim and witness statements.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got video from that area, from people in that area. We\u2019re not making things up,\u201d cops said.<\/p>\n
Speaking to 7News on Monday, Lopez fired back after watching the video.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s false! He never left the house,\u201d said Lopez. \u201cYou have the officers telling him that they have videos, fabricating the evidence that they did not have.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was at home. I did not do it,\u201d said Boykins.<\/p>\n
Boykins\u2019 father, Roy Hardemon, a state representative who has since passed away, defended his son while speaking to officers after the arrest.<\/p>\n
\u201cFact is, neither one of y\u2019all saw him nowhere,\u201d said Hardemon.<\/p>\n
But the 2024 arrest wasn\u2019t the first time Hardemon had to deal with his son\u2019s legal trouble. In 2016, Boykins was accused of a hit-and-run arrest that sent a teen to the hospital.<\/p>\n
At that time, Hardemon spoke to 7News after the hit-and-run arrest.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou gotta call the police, and that\u2019s what we did,\u201d said Hardemon.<\/p>\n
Boykins spent a year behind bars for that crime.<\/p>\n
But as for his latest case, which is now closed, he maintains his innocence.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not do it. I\u2019ve been going through a lot,\u201d said Boykins.<\/p>\n
Boykins adds that since his release from jail, he\u2019s received messages from acquaintances of the Opa-locka Police Department.<\/p>\n
7News has reached out to Opa-locka Police for comment on the allegations. A police spokesperson said they will get back to 7News.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2025 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.<\/p>\n
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