Brazilian Influencer’s Miami Motorcycle Crash Sparks Outrage: Officer Injured, Deportation Looms
Armando Fogaça Faces Felony Charges After Allegedly Striking Miami Beach Cop and Fleeing
A high-profile motorcycle collision involving Brazilian-born fitness influencer Armando Fogaça has sent shockwaves through Miami, leaving a police officer injured and igniting heated online debates. The incident, captured on newly released body camera footage, occurred on May 5, 2025, at the intersection of Fifth Street and Lenox Avenue in Miami Beach. Fogaça, known for his jaw-dropping Instagram stunts like crushing watermelons and bending metal pans, now faces serious felony charges and potential deportation.
According to Miami-Dade police reports, Officer Anthony Guzman attempted to stop Fogaça for making an illegal right turn on red. Body camera footage, detailed by Local 10 News, shows Fogaça briefly halting before accelerating, striking Guzman, and knocking him to the ground. The officer sustained fractured ribs, abrasions, and bruising, requiring treatment at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Fogaça fled the scene, speeding onto the MacArthur Causeway at an estimated 80-100 mph, according to his wife’s statement to police.
The chase ended in a crash when Fogaça collided with another vehicle, throwing his wife from the motorcycle. She was hospitalized at Ryder Trauma Center. Fogaça, who lacks a valid driver’s license and holds only a Brazilian passport, was arrested on-site. He now faces a slew of felony charges, including aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon, leaving the scene of a crash causing serious bodily injury, driving without a license causing injury, fleeing and eluding, and reckless driving, per Miami-Dade court records. An immigration detainer also threatens deportation if he’s convicted.
Fogaça’s attorneys argue he didn’t intend to hit the officer, citing confusion or loss of control, but prosecutors point to the video evidence as proof of deliberate action. Currently held without bond at Metrowest Detention Center, Fogaça awaits his next court date on August 7, 2025. The case has fueled online firestorms, with fans and critics clashing over the influencer’s actions, given his massive following of over 500,000 on his Instagram account before it was taken off-line.
This incident underscores Miami-Dade’s growing hit-and-run epidemic, with 8,812 cases reported from January 1 to July 10, 2025, causing numerous injuries and fatalities, according to Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
As the motorcycle community watches closely, Fogaça’s case raises questions about road safety, accountability, and the consequences of reckless riding.