An online petition has garnered over half a million signatures calling for the release of a Guatemalan man who was arrested and then later charged with the death of the officer who arrested him.

Nineteen-year-old Virgilio Aguilar Mendez is facing charges of aggravated manslaughter after Florida police officer, Sgt. Michael Kunovich, suffered a fatal heart attack while arresting Aguilar Mendez. Body cam footage of Aguilar Mendez's arrest shows a perplexing scene that quickly escalated because of Aguilar Mendez's inability to communicate with officers.

On May 19th, 2023, Aguilar Mendez stood outside a Motel 8 building In St Augustine, Florida. Court documents detail that Aguilar Mendez was on the phone with his mother and stepped outside to eat a meal. As he was standing by the motel, body cam footage shows Kunovich, an officer with the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, approaching Aguilar Mendez. Kunovich can be heard on the body cam video telling dispatch that Aguilar Mendez was a “suspicious Hispanic male,” yet he never specifies why he felt that Aguilar Mendez was suspicious.

Kunovich approaches Aguilar Mendez and begins aggressively asking him a series of questions to which Aguilar Mendez appears unable to understand or respond to. In broken English, Aguilar Mendez appears to tell Kunovich that he was eating food and was walking to get a drink.

Kunovich continues asking the teen if he has any weapons on him and then proceeds to grab Aguilar Mendez on his arm. The teen responds by apologizing and walking away before a struggle quickly ensues. Kunovich calls on backup, and at least four other deputies arrive, assisting Kunovich in what quickly turns into a scuffle that lasts approximately six minutes.

During the scuffle, Aguilar Mendez can be heard telling the officers that he does not speak English. Still, Kunovich repeatedly stuns the teen with his taser. During the arrest, Aguilar Mendez can be heard calling out for his family and repeating that he does not understand English.

Officers search Aguilar Mendez and find a pocketknife in his pocket, which they arrest him on. While the body cam footage never shows the teen reaching for the knife, the body cam footage records one of the officers telling him to drop the knife. Aguilar Mendez can be heard trying to explain to the officers that he uses the knife to cut up watermelon.

Shortly after the scuffle and arrest, Kunovich collapses. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he was later pronounced dead.

An autopsy report analyzed by ABC News details that Kunovich died because of natural causes following an episode of cardiac dysrhythmia. The report also notes that Kunovich had severe heart disease, a prior heart attack, and lung deterioration because of smoking.

"These cardiac changes, while recent, predate the struggle with the subject," the report outlines. "The circumstances do not fully meet the criteria for a homicide manner of death."

Aguilar Mendez, a Guatemalan immigrant of Maya descent, speaks the Mayan language, Mam. Outrage among immigrant communities and legal organizations say that the language barrier along with Kunovich’s racially motivated profiling is what led to the wrongful arrest and untimely death of Kunovich.

A Change.Org petition has racked up over 540,000 signatures calling for the release of Aguilar Mendez. Phillip Arroyo, Aguilar Mendez’s lawyer, has called the arrest racially motivated, explaining, "It's a grave injustice, and they know it. The facts of this case and the evidence in this case do not support the charge that he is facing."

The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office thinks differently, however. They say the bodycam footage shows a “by the book, textbook” arrest of a suspect who resisted arrest and that the event of the arrest is what led to Kunovich’s death. However, Arroyo maintains, "Nobody knew that Mr. Kunovich had a heart condition, much less our client."

Aguilar Mendez is currently behind bars while a judge determines an amount for his bond. Aguilar Mendez is facing charges of aggravated manslaughter of an officer, a first-degree felony punishable by up to life in prison, and resisting an officer with violence, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.

In a hearing on his mental competency last Friday, a defense witness shared that Aguilar Mendez has a sixth-grade education and cannot understand the legal proceedings against him in the U.S.