A brawl that erupted in a Red Lobster restaurant on Mother’s Day has led to the arrest of four men in their 20s.
The melee in Columbus, Georgia , was captured on cellphone video and uploaded originally to Instagram before it found its way to YouTube and other social media sites. See embedded footage below.
An unidentified family was exiting the seafood eatery Sunday afternoon when the confrontation got ugly.
“As one family was leaving the Red Lobster… on Sunday afternoon around 3 p.m., a group of males came in and jumped on one of the guys who was with the group leaving the restaurant,” a law enforcement official told ABC News affiliate WTVM in Columbus.
To make matters worse, the alleged victim of the assault apparently was holding a toddler in his arms when the violence started, but fortunately the child was not harmed.
According to authorities, the victim may have been targeted because the alleged attackers thought he may have been involved in an unsolved 2014 fatal drive-by shooting in the city.
The victim and two others who were trying to protect the 14-month-old baby amidst the chaos were reportedly treated at a local hospital for cuts to the head and face and then released.
“As soon as we walked out the door, they just started surrounding us and I said, ‘there are kids out here please don’t do that,’ and they just started throwing blows,” a family member explained .
Responding cops arrested four suspects; two had fled to a wooded area near the restaurant and two others were located in a parking lot close by. They currently face charges of battery, reckless conduct, and disorderly conduct. Three of the four bonded out of jail yesterday.
On Monday, a Red Lobster corporate official released the following statement about the Mother’s Day incident.
“The safety of our guests and our team is our top priority. What happened yesterday was unacceptable and we do not tolerate that type of behavior in our restaurants. We continue to cooperate with the ongoing police investigation, and are thankful no one was hurt, especially on a special day like Mother’s Day. It is safe to eat at the Columbus Red Lobster, and the team there looks forward to serving the community.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ42qGentWA
Founded in 1968 and now headquartered in Orlando, Florida, the Red Lobster chain has about 700 outlets in the U.S. and Canada and is said to be the world’s largest casual dining seafood restaurant company.
[Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News]
