A violent encounter early Friday morning at a McDonald’s restaurant in New York City resulted in the arrest of one man who was charged with menacing after wielding a hatchet inside the eatery, doing significant damage to the decor.
The incident was recorded and posted to TikTok and then Twitter.
The video does not show the start of an altercation between a man and group of other men, which took place at about 2:30 a.m., according to the New York Post.
It does show how a series of minor scuffles slowly escalated into what could easily have been a deadly situation.
Lee Zeldin, Republican candidate for governor, publicized the incident on Twitter as an example of how dangerous the Empire State has grown under Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Just another day in Kathy Hochul’s New York. After we fire Hochul on November 8th, we are taking back our streets!pic.twitter.com/QgUYEvdJMm
— Lee Zeldin (@leezeldin) September 17, 2022
During a pause in the initial hostilities, the man who was being slapped and punched by the group seemed to smile for a moment. He then took off his backpack off and produced a hatchet.
The video shows the man swinging the weapon repeatedly. A table, a glass barrier, and one wall appear to have taken the brunt of the blows.
Although the man swung the hatchet while he was close to several customers, no one was hit.
The man then left the restaurant.
New York City police responded to the restaurant, located on Delancey Street in Manhattan’s Lower East Side neighborhood, according to NBC.
“Upon arrival of officers, witnesses at the location reported that the suspect got into a physical dispute with three unknown males inside of the location,” an NYPD representative said.
“The suspect removed an axe from his backpack and menaced the unknown males. The suspect intentionally caused property damage to the establishment. The individual was taken into custody by responding officers,” the representative said.
Michael Palacios, 31, of the Bronx, was charged with criminal mischief, three counts of menacing, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, according to the New York Post.
“The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority,” McDonald’s restaurant owner-operator Paul Hendel said in a statement, according to NBC. “We are shocked by these acts of violence committed in our restaurant, and we are cooperating fully with the authorities in their investigation.”
Palacios told the Post on Saturday that “all of this was very sudden.”
He was more verbose on his Instagram account.
“I Just wanted to get a buy one get one for $1 with a diet coke with my man’s e-money when this gang attacked me,” he wrote.
He then mocked the circumstances of his chase and arrest.
“After the 5 minute police chase through the lower East side @nypd told me ‘that was fun chase’. They didn’t hurt me off the bike with their car as they tailed me in circles around Delaney Traffic was weak and I couldn’t get out of the neighborhood I fell of my bike making a hair pin turn from the street to the sidewalk, landing on my shoulder and dislocating it. They took me to the hospital and than jail. And now I’m out,” he wrote.
“Some of you want me to go to jail? Already did! Haha. So Have a great day. Btw I came out the precinct and the cops gave me props. ‘dude you went viral!’. Oh word? So if they not that pressed, you mean ol’ people that involve politics in everything but cant pull themselves up from the side of a cliff will get blocked,” he wrote.
“Also you gun nuts are psychopaths. If I had a gun, I’d use it like an axe,” he wrote.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
