Anaheim gang officers Nathan Garcia & Kyle Smith.
Nathan picture courtesy of Councilwoman Natalie Rubalcava.
We write here regularly about APD officer Nathan Garcia because he killed 19-year old Albert Arzola last December for no apparent reason, and the police, city and DA are taking forever coming up with a story to justify it. Also it is hard to stop saying the name “Nathan Garcia” if only because it took us all so freaking long to even find that name out.
And NOW we FINALLY have a picture of him. Funny, Albert’s family already had several pictures of Nathan because he’d been harassing Albert for a few months before he killed him, but their attorney told them not to share those pictures with anyone because that would look vengeful or threatening or some stupid thing. But NO WORRIES, Councilwoman Natalie Rubalcava had no problem posting his picture on her social media after the recent “National Night Out” event.
So that’s what the killer looks like – a bald Oliver Hardy with a cop mustache! Thanks, Natalie.
But what I was trying to say, and wouldn’t fit into a headline, is that it was Nathan AND HIS PARTNER Kyle Smith, who cost us Anaheim taxpayers that amount of $242,779.67 with their EXCESSIVE FORCE against an innocent 14-year old three years ago. [Don’t get confused, this is a SEPARATE incident from the Dec. ’25 Arzola killing.] Donna, who’s been getting good at doing this sort of research, discovered that it was our old friend Judge David Carter who ordered that amount last month. Who knows how many of these cases fly under the radar, hurt people, cost us money, and we never hear about?
One thing that should not be forgotten: after the Dec. ’26 killing of Albert Arzola, the city and the APD kept Nathan Garcia’s name secret from the family and the public – for five months, much longer than general practice – with the excuse that there were “threats against the officer who fired.” None of us knew anybody that had threatened or would threaten this cop. But then all of a sudden, once the excessive force case was settled, alleged Arzola threats against Garcia were no longer a problem – they vanished into thin air! – and Nathan’s name was released.
- April 21 Council meeting, around 8pm – Mayor Aitken and the City Attorney announced to the Arzolas that the cop’s name was finally being e-mailed to their attorney and there was great applause.
- April 22 (probably morning) – excessive force case was settled.
- May 4 – public finally learns the name of Albert’s killer, via the LA Times, various PRA requests, and the Arzolas’ attorney.
- July 14 the amount of $242,779.67 was awarded by Judge Carter. (Did Carter by then know about the murder, and did that factor into the award amount? I’m trying to find out.)
Clearly there was no threat against Nathan Garcia. Clearly the City and APD wanted to get this excessive force case out of the way before letting the world know that Nathan Garcia had also killed someone. Clearly the City of Anaheim and their police force are liars, who don’t mind falsely portraying the Arzolas and their supporters as dangerous terrorists when convenient. But I guess we’re just letting that slide.
So, what did Nathan & Kyle do to cost us $242,779.67?
I’m not seeing the same court documents that the Time’s Gabriel San Roman saw, so I’ll be relying on his May 4 summary, except now that the case is settled, and we’re ordered to pay a hefty amount, I’m going to assume that what the teenager and his mother claimed is true, and I will leave out “allegedly” or “according to the complaint.” Here goes:
On June 27, 2024, Officers Nathan Garcia and Kyle Smith stopped a 14-year old Latino boy as he rode his bike home after shopping for bike parts at a nearby strip mall. The boy, who had had no prior arrests, tried to stand and raise his hands when an “unprovoked and brutal” assault followed.
After they tackled the boy from the sidewalk into an asphalt parking lot, both officers repeatedly drove their knees into the teen’s back and “violently” pulled his arm, as he pleaded “I am not resisting.”
Garcia failed to intervene as obligated by department policy when Smith turned the teen on his back and struck his genitals. Both officers cuffed the 14-year-old so tightly that he lost feeling in his hands, and they laughed at his distress.
Officers released the boy to his mother in an attempt to “dissuade” him from seeking transfer to a hospital. His mother took him anyway. The rough arrest had caused him injuries, including a fractured shoulder.
The boy was given a notice to appear in court for resisting arrest and illegally operating a pocket bike, but the suit argued that the officers had “fabricated evidence” and falsely accused him of crimes as a cover for their use of excessive force. The excessive force suit was filed in February 2026, settled in April, and now that $243k award has been ordered by Judge Carter in July.
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Kyle Smith is a piece of work in his own right, and we’ve written about our experiences with him on Anna Drive HERE. One thing we still don’t know about the Arzola murder is, who was driving the unmarked police car that Nathan jumped out of, before running up the steps of Albert’s porch, tumbling down backwards and then shooting him? (We don’t know how many times, or how many bullets hit him or where, either.) Who was Nathan’s partner that night, and didn’t have his bodycam on (allegedly?) Was it Kyle Smith? Public Information Officer Sutter tells me it wasn’t, so maybe it wasn’t.
Most recently I wrote about how Nathan Garcia had been regularly harassing Albert for five months before killing him – starting with Nathan arresting Albert (perhaps wrongly) for graffiti, and Albert making fun of Nathan’s shoes. The point, which some didn’t get, wasn’t that the harassment was so unusual or horrific, but just to make it known that, when Nathan killed Albert, he knew who he was and didn’t like him.
And my early coverage of the killing:
- Albert Arzola, 19, Killed by Anaheim Police Last Night. With Videos.
- THE SCARY GUN: APD responds to my Arzola story.
- Arzola Killing pt 3: “Informational Meeting,” Critical Incident Video.
Wait, see this again. The grainy, silent surveillance video from across the street.
Do you see a person who comes out onto the porch with a phone in his hand (that looks like a light), and gestures and remonstrates while all the chaos happens around him? Looks like the best witness. I’m-a see if I can talk to him. Stay tuned.
