Young Man Rebuilding His Life Asks Cop Who Arrested Him to Be His Mentor

Avon, IN — Rameil Pitamber was 17-years old when he was arrested for armed robbery. But now that he has been out of prison, he is striving to rebuild his life. What’s more, his new mentor is the same police officer who arrested him!

Pitamber was an honors student in high school, but he started struggling when his father died. Troubled, he attempted to rob a restaurant at gunpoint with a friend. He was then arrested, convicted for felony armed robbery and criminal confinement and was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

Deputy Police Chief Brian Nugent was the officer who arrested Pitamber. Daphne Harris, Pitamber’s mother, couldn’t believe what happened but she accepted it and insisted on keeping in touch with Nugent. She wanted him to know that her son is not just any other teen in trouble and that she is still supporting her son despite what happened.

Due to good behavior, Pitamber was released early from prison. He knew he would never want to go back to prison so he started turning his life around. He knew that to do that, he would need a mentor.

One day, as he was working at a local Goodwill store, he saw Nugent dropping off some donated goods. He asked the police officer if he could be his mentor and he gladly said yes. Their unlikely connection did not only help him change his life, but also change his perspective about police.

“I hope that people can see, with everything that is going on, is all it takes is respect on both sides,” Harris told CBS News. “It’s more good kids out there than bad. It’s more good police out there than bad.”

Now, Pitamber has returned to school and has a steady job doing heating and air. He is also renovating his own home. He is grateeful for his mentor for what has been happening in his life now.

“He treated me with compassion and understanding, and he never treated me less than, not once. To this day, he still builds my worth and self esteem,” he said. “With him in my corner, I can do anything.”