SF Mayor's Bodyguards Attacked, Two Arrested
Two men have been arrested for allegedly attacking the bodyguards assigned to San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie. The incident occurred in the last 24 hours, though police have released few other details about the confrontation.
The incident unfolded around 5:38 p.m. in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood, near Cedar and Polk streets. Mayor Daniel Lurie, who was not harmed, told reporters he was in his SUV when he saw people in the street and stopped to ask them to move. One of the mayor's bodyguards sustained a bleeding head injury after being thrown to the ground during the ensuing struggle and was treated at the scene for non-life-threatening injuries. Police arrested two men at the scene: 44-year-old Tony Phillips and 33-year-old Abraham Simon. Phillips faces multiple charges, including assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer, resisting an executive officer, and battery on a peace officer. Simon was booked on suspicion of resisting or obstructing an officer and for an outstanding warrant. One of the suspects, Tony Phillips, was previously arrested in 2019 in connection with a fatal stabbing. The San Francisco District Attorney's Office, however, declined to file charges in that case, citing a lack of evidence. Subsequent video footage of the altercation has added more context to the initial reports. A 90-second clip shows the officer, who has not been identified, first forcefully shoving Phillips before the physical struggle began. Mayor Lurie can be seen observing parts of the fight before walking away, which he stated was to get his second bodyguard from the vehicle. The head of the San Francisco Police Officers Association, Louis Wong, commended the officers for acting "swiftly and courageously to protect him in a dangerous and unpredictable situation." Mayor Lurie, a philanthropist and heir to the Levi Strauss fortune, took office in January 2025 after defeating incumbent London Breed in the 2024 election.
