Minister seen in brawl video quits

Honduras’ foreign minister resigned after a video posted on the YouTube website showed him throwing punches at police following a traffic stop.

Milton Jimenez acknowledged being intoxicated when police stopped him for driving without license plates, but maintained that he had been mistreated. He showed reporters bruises on his arms that he said were caused when officers tossed him roughly into a pickup truck.

“I was wrong to have been driving while intoxicated . . . but I think the excessive actions don’t help democracy,” he said.

Police stopped Jimenez, 50, Sunday in the capital, Tegucigalpa.

Public Safety Minister Gen. Alvaro Romero said Jimenez refused to identify himself or to take a sobriety test. He did not explain why Jimenez was released without any charges.