LAFAYETTE, IN — Two of the half-dozen or more people suspected of an early Sunday morning beatdown on the pedestrian bridge are in jail.
On Wednesday, police arrested Zachary James Tyner, 58, of the 1300 block of North 14th Street in Lafayette. On Thursday, police arrested Lesslare Edward Porter, 33, of the 500 block of Gordon Court in Lafayette, according to jail records.
Porter and Tyner are suspected of aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony. Both told police they were involved in the attack on the bridge, according to prosecutors, who have until Wednesday afternoon to file formal charges, according to court documents.
Porter remains incarcerated in lieu of a $100,000 surety bond and a $10,000 cash bond. He is also charged with four counts of intimidation in a Feb. 10, 2026, incident set for trial Aug. 20.
Tyner is jailed in lieu of a $50,000 surety bond and a $5,000 cash bond. He was convicted in 2025 on a charge of driving while intoxicated.
Tyner and Porter were part of a crowd of seven to 10 people who attacked a 22-year-old Lafayette man on the John T. Myer Pedestrian Bridge about 4:50 a.m. Sunday, July 12, according to prosecutors.
The group rushed the alleged victim and punched him. The alleged victim also is initially seen throwing punches in the videos. The victim was knocked to the ground, where the group continued to punch him and kick him, according to video published on social media. When the man was down, some of the assailants kicked and stomped on his head.
The alleged victim told police he was walking with a woman on the bridge, when one of the women in the group spoke to him. The woman in the group told the men to jump the alleged victim, according to court documents. Tyner and Porter were identified from the videos.
In one of the videos provided by the alleged victim, he is seen being pushed away from the crowd of nearly a dozen people by another white person.
The person making the video appears to be a woman. “This drunk white boy,” she says as she records.
The alleged victim, whom the J&C is not naming, is heard on the video he provided as saying, “You’ll knock me out? I’ll knock all of them out. You know I f—ing could. I f—ing could,” as the other white man keeps pushing him away from the crowd.
After the alleged victim breaks free from the man trying to push him away from the crowd, the scene on the bridge becomes chaotic with fists flying as they circle the alleged victim and people shouting, according to the videos.
The victim sought treatment Monday and Tuesday at a local hospital for his injuries, including a severe concussion, extreme head pain and blurred vision, according to court documents. He told police he lost consciousness during the assault.
Everyone — the alleged victim, the men and women in the crowd — threw punches, according to the video. The crowd outnumbered the alleged victim and overwhelmed him, knocking him to the ground.
After the brawl, the alleged victim reported the attack Sunday afternoon. He also reported the group stole his cell phone.
It is uncertain whether other suspects have been identified or arrested, because a Lafayette police spokesman has told the Journal & Courier the last several days there were no updates and no arrests, despite Tyner’s and Porter’s arrests.
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: 2 suspects arrested in the brawl on Lafayette’s pedestrian bridge
Reporting by Ron Wilkins, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ron Wilkins, Lafayette Journal & Courier | USA TODAY Network
