NYPD commissioner vows apology to James Blake following mistaken arrest

Following Wednesday's mistaken arrest of former tennis star James Blake, New York City's police commissioner declared his intention to apologize to the victim, who said plainclothes officers tackled and handcuffed him outside his hotel in midtown Manhattan.

Blake, 35, said he was slammed to the ground Wednesday in front of the Grand Hyatt Hotel by five white officers, who apparently mistook him for a suspect in an identity theft ring.

"We are very interested in speaking with Mr. Blake ... to extend our apology. It should not have happened," commissioner William J. Bratton said.

The plainclothes officers responsible for the incident were not wearing badges or another form of identification, according to Blake.

Bratton said an officer involved in the incident has been placed on modified assignment without gun or badge pending an investigation from internal affairs.

In a conversation with CNN, Bratton said the suspect they were searching for looked like "the twin brother of Mr. Blake," adding that Blake had not yet responded to messages.

In an interview with CNN's "New Day," Bratton expanded on the reasons why Blake was misidentified.

The NYPD released a statement detailing the detectives' intent, courtesy of The Washington Post:

Detectives from the Identity Theft Task Force were investigating the purchase of cell phones using fraudulent credit cards, two law enforcement sources told CNN.

Investigators organized a sting operation at the Hyatt Hotel, where phones were delivered to a male suspect who was later taken into custody, the law enforcement sources said.

That suspect identified two people in the lobby of the Hyatt to whom he had delivered cell phones that were purchased with a fraudulent credit card, they added.

Blake, who was once ranked No. 4 in the world, was one of the people placed in handcuffs but was let go shortly after a retired NYPD officer informed detectives that Blake was a tennis player.

Once Blake was properly identified and found to have no connection to the investigation, he was released from police custody immediately.

Blake said in an interview Thursday that "most cops are doing a great job keeping us safe, but when you (have) police with reckless abandon, you need to be held accountable."

Added Blake, those "doing police work the wrong way need to pay for those actions and be shown either the door or whatever they need to do to punish them."