Police in Ormond Beach, Florida, said a party of four had been dining at the Fresh Guacamole Tequila & Bar Mexican Grill on West Granada Boulevard on May 6 and were displeased with the bill, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reported.
Soon an argument erupted with the restaurant staff, the paper said, adding that an arrest report states that one of the employees actually tried to de-escalate the tense situation by telling the customers they could leave without paying the bill.
The suspect ‘brandished a firearm toward restaurant staff, including a juvenile, during an altercation.’
Apparently, that wasn’t good enough.
Amid the dustup, a woman with the dissatisfied group started banging on the plexiglass that protects the cashier, the News-Journal said.
What’s more, she managed to get past the plexiglass and pushed toward four employees — one of them being the 16-year-old son of one of the workers, police told the paper.
Soon, the irate female started yelling in the face of one of the employees, and the 16-year-old boy stepped up to defend his dad, police told the News-Journal.
It was at that moment that a male was seen on surveillance video reaching into a bag, pulling out a silver handgun, and pointing it at the four employees — including the 16-year-old boy — police added to the paper.
With that, the woman pushed the male who pointed the gun out of the restaurant, and they departed, police told the News-Journal.
Then, cops got to work over the next month, the paper said, and police said they verified through photo lineups and facial recognition technology from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office that 25-year-old Anthony Rodriguez of Daytona Beach was the male seen pulling the gun on the restaurant’s employees.
Police on June 3 posted a wanted notice on Facebook asking for the public’s help in locating Rodriguez.
Image source: Ormond Beach (Fla.) Police Department
Police said in its public notice that an investigation determined Rodriguez “brandished a firearm toward restaurant staff, including a juvenile, during an altercation. No injuries were reported.” Police asked for help and tips in order to locate Rodriguez, who had a felony arrest warrant for four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Police told Blaze News that in their above notice, the right-hand photo is a surveillance image while the left-hand photo is a previous mug shot of Rodriquez.
By the afternoon of June 5, police issued an update saying Rodriguez turned himself in and was taken into custody. Jail records indicate Rodriguez was booked on the evening of June 5 and released the next day. Jail records showed his cash bond amount for each count was $7,500 — or $30,000 total.
Anything else?
Just last weekend, Blaze News reported about another Florida restaurant dispute that turned into a dangerous encounter.
Police in Orlando said a male standing 6’2” and weighing 280 pounds choked a cop after refusing to pay a $50.50 restaurant tab.
Image source: Orange County (Fla.) Jail
After being asked to pay up, 22-year-old Daniel Robinson allegedly shoved the female owner of the pizza joint and departed, WOFL-TV reported. Officers tracked down Robinson and tried to arrest him — and then one officer stared hollering, “He’s choking me,” WFTV-TV reported.
Another officer said he punched Robinson in the face until the choking stopped, WFTV said, adding that police also maced the suspect. Police said when medical personnel arrived, Robinson spat in an officer’s face amid an attempt to restrain him on a stretcher, WOFL reported. Robinson was booked into jail and was facing multiple charges, including attempted homicide of a law enforcement officer, WOFL said.
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