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Last updated on Thursday, September 11, 2014
(UNDATED) - Two Indy Metro Police officers face felony battery charges in an August bar fight on the southside.
Prosecutors accuse Nick Serban and Mike Reiger of choking a man unconscious at Mikie's Pub, then dragging him nearly 50 feet into the parking lot and continuing to kick and step on him.
Detectives say the officers were off-duty when a bartender asked an unruly customer to leave, and Serban stepped in, flashed his badge and announced he'd take care of the situation.
Police say a surveillance video shows the customer grabbed the badge and threw it to the floor, followed by a brawl that eventually spilled into the parking lot.
Serban faces a second battery count accusing him of punching the bar's doorman in the mouth when he tried to break up the fight.
The customer reported the incident to police a few days later. He told investigators he threw the badge because he thought it was a fake.
Serban faces up to eight-and-a-half years in prison if convicted. Reiger could receive as much as six years.
IMPD Chief Rick Hite says both officers are suspended without pay while he asks the Merit Board to fire them.
Hite says he won't wait for the criminal case to be resolved, but will seek that hearing immediately. He says he believes there's sufficient grounds to fire the officers for departmental conduct violations.
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