Actor Raymond Cruz, known for his role as Tuco Salamanca on "Breaking Bad" and its spin-off "Better Call Saul," was arrested Monday in Los Angeles on suspicion of misdemeanor battery after a confrontation involving a garden hose, according to reports.
The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed that officers responded to a disturbance in the Silver Lake neighborhood at around 10:40 a.m, The Independent reported. Cruz was taken into custody following the incident but later released on his own recognizance, according to booking records. He is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 1. Authorities have not disclosed additional details about the case.
Cruz's agent, Raphael Berko, disputed the allegations in statements to multiple media outlets, describing the situation as a misunderstanding.
"The accusation is so outrageous and dangerous," Berko told Entertainment Weekly.
In comments to People magazine, Berko said Cruz had been washing his car outside his home when three women, whom he did not know, parked extremely close to his vehicle. According to Berko, Cruz asked them to move the car, but they declined and began filming him. He claimed that while Cruz was still holding the hose, water inadvertently splashed onto the women's vehicle.
"Raymond asked them not to film him, and when he turned around to tell them to stop filming him, he was still hosing his car. And some of the water from his hose hit the front of his car and spilled on their car," Berko said.
"And then believe it or not, one of them called the police," he added. "And somehow someone who's never been arrested in his life, someone who played a police detective for 15 years on 'The Closer' and 'Major Crimes,' someone who lives in that neighborhood, was put in handcuffs and taken to jail."
Berko added that Cruz was treated respectfully while in custody.
"Raymond's very grateful to all of the LAPD personnel at the police department because throughout the five hours of him being in their jail, the LAPD were all very, very gracious and nice to him and reassuring," he said.
Cruz, 63, is widely recognized for portraying volatile cartel figure Tuco Salamanca in the first two seasons of AMC's "Breaking Bad" and later in "Better Call Saul." Beyond that role, he starred as Detective Julio Sanchez on TNT's long-running crime drama "The Closer" and its sequel series "Major Crimes."
The case remains under review, and Cruz has not entered a plea.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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