TEMPE, Ariz. — For four minutes and 35 seconds, Sean Bickings struggled to stay afloat pleading for help that would never come.
It would take more than six hours to pull his body from Tempe Town Lake.
Two days before he drowned, Bickings met with Tempe's mayor, police, and city officials over homeless issues. According to his friends, Bickings asked what homeless people were supposed to do if they have warrants
“He had the courage to ask questions about changing his situation," Benjamin Jeffrey, Bickings's friend, said.
Bickings had four felony warrants, all sixth-degree drug-related felonies.
Officers were called to the Elmore Pedestrian Bridge after a Downtown Tempe Authority ambassador reported a disturbance between Bickings and his companion on May 28.
Officers told the couple they were running their names through a database to check whether people have outstanding arrest warrants. Officials said the check was not complete when Bickings slowly climbed over a 4-foot metal fence and entered the water.
City officials said he swam about 30-40 yards before indicating he was in distress. Tempe police say the first call to water rescue was at 5:13 in the morning, around one minute after Bickings got into the water.
“What he said in his last words was 'help me, please,'" Jeffrey said.
According to a transcript released by Tempe police, Bickings begged for help in the water.
The transcript reads in part:
Bickings: I’m drowning. (inaudible)
Officer 2: Come back over to the pylon.
Bickings: I can’t. I can’t. (inaudible)
Officer 1: Okay, I’m not jumping in after you.
Victim: (inaudible) Please help me. Please, please, please
“Had there been something to help him, we wouldn’t be doing this interview,” Jeffrey said.
His friends say it was a fear of an arrest, that may have pushed him to the water's edge.
“He was terrified of jail. He didn’t want to go to jail. He was looking for a solution to not go to jail," Jeffrey said.
The officers involved are on paid leave. The actions of the officers and the policies of the city are under review.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Antes de ahogarse frente a los oficiales de Tempe, el hombre se reunió con funcionarios de la ciudad para hablar sobre los temas de los desfavorecidos
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