LAPD officers will fight British cops in charity boxing event
More than a dozen British police officers invaded L.A. to exchange jabs and left hooks with boxers from the Los Angeles Police Department.
While Saturday’s event will raise money for charity, it will also make history for the LAPD team when the headliner fight pits two female officers against each other.
For the record:
2:54 p.m. July 19, 2019An earlier version of this story gave the name of a West Midlands police constable as Aaron Ó Beacháin. His last name is Behan.
LAPD Foothill gang Officer Deirdre Fonseca and Officer Clare Hankinson from Great Britain’s West Midlands Police Force playfully gazed at each other when they were introduced outside police headquarters in front of a memorial wall honoring officers killed in the line of duty.
The British boxers said they didn’t come to America to get knocked out.
“We haven’t flown over 5,000 miles to be losers,” joked coach West Midlands Police Constable Aaron Behan, also a boxing coach. “A little bit of fighting talk. We’re here to win.”
LAPD senior lead officer and boxing coach John Negrete said police share common bonds, regardless of the countries they serve, and that a passion for boxing brought them together this week.
“That’s how powerful these gloves are,” he said “That’s what this sport means to us.”
The fighters will square off 5 p.m. Saturday at the Montebello Quiet Cannon to raise money for the Los Angeles Police Protective League’s Officer Down Foundation, which helps officers and their families in times of need.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
