ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A Florida man is talking exclusively to Channel 2 Action News about his encounter with an off-duty Atlanta police officer at an Alpharetta hotel bar that ended with the officer in jail and on leave.
Mark Durcho told Channel 2's Mike Petchenik he and his wife were enjoying an after-dinner drink with another couple at the Hyatt Place Hotel on North Point Parkway Sept. 19 when a very drunk Scott Perry became belligerent with them.
"We didn't know he was a cop," said Durcho. "I just thought he was some redneck drunk."
Durcho said Perry started by giving the couples a hard time about where they had gone for dinner, then escalated to trying to kiss his male friend on the head.
"The guy seemed like he was trying to cause trouble with us," he said. "This went on for five, 10 minutes at the bar and Genesco said, 'No kisses, now you're being disrespectful.'"
Durcho said at one point Perry took some leftover food off the bar and started to take it away, then tried to punch Durcho's friend Genesco, a 65-year-old who also happens to be a sixth-degree black belt karate instructor.
"When the guy swung at him Genesco just grabbed at him and laid him down," he said. "He could have hurt him and he didn't."
According to an incident report, when Alpharetta police arrived Perry yelled at the officers to "tase me," which the officers did.
Atlanta police say Perry is on paid leave while they conduct an Internal Affairs investigation. Officials said Chief George Turner has always prioritized officer accountability and will continue to take decisive action when necessary to hold his employees to the highest standard.
Petchenik attempted to reach Perry in person at his Gainesville home and by phone, but couldn’t reach him for comment Tuesday.
Perry's next-door neighbor and friend, Chris Kitcho, is a former Atlanta police officer. He told Petchenik Perry is a good, hardworking officer.
"Scott's the kind of guy who will give you the shirt off his back," he said. "I couldn't believe it. Scott's usually the type of guy who is squared away, doesn't make any mistakes really. He's always going by the book, criticizing everyone else for doing things."
Kitcho said he thinks the situation has been blown out of proportion.
"You have these little isolated incidents and it's all over the news, but yet the people getting in trouble for murders and robberies, they're getting out on probation and no one wants to cover those stories," he said. "I hope nothing happens to him. In the scheme of things, besides the media make it look worse than what it was, to me it seems like he had a couple too many drinks and that's it."