Playing dodge ball with this Florida man will necessitate more than sidestepping rubber projectiles, police said.
Halid Dedic, 22, of St. Petersburg, was taken into custody late Friday after a game of dodge ball at a trampoline arena in Largo took a violent turn, WFLA reports.
Police said Dedic got so enraged after getting struck by a ball during the game that he tracked down and tried to tackle a 15-year-old who popped him. But Dedic fell during the aggressive maneuver, only to get back up on his feet and charge the teen victim again, according to an affidavit obtained by the station.
Dedic — who is 6-foot-1 and weighs 165 pounds, according to jail records — then got in the teen’s face before slapping him with an “open hand,” leaving the boy with a red mark on his face, the affidavit states.
Witnesses also told police that a mouthy Dedic had been “trash-talking” other players during the dodge ball game, threatening to assault others as well.
Dedic, who was charged with child abuse, remained in custody as of Monday in the Pinellas County Jail on $5,000 bond. He also faces charges in connection to violating his probation on earlier charges of burglary, dealing in stolen property and trafficking in stolen property, jail records show.