Two men were viciously attacked by bouncers in a Fort Lauderdale bar over the weekend in an incident caught on video.
However, when one of the men returned to the scene to explain to police what had taken place, he was arrested on charges of assault on an officer and disorderly conduct.
That video is not available at this time, if there is even one, but there is no question the two bouncers should have been arrested as well.
In fact, there is a strong chance that Alexander Coelho, the man who was punched and kicked in the head by one of the bouncers, did not do anything remotely close to what police blame him for, going down as another example of why we should never depend on the police for anything.
I also wouldn’t be surprised if the most aggressive bouncer is applying to become a cop because he obviously has what it takes.
Unless a bullied bar patron puts a bullet in him first.
The video was posted on Instagram and the story the story was picked up by the Broward New Times. The quote is from Victoria Silva and not Mary Ann Crespo as was noted in the New Times story (Silva contacted me to set the record straight):
“This is a video of my friend Stephanie & her boyfriend, Alex. They were at Blondies yesterday, got a drink they didn’t like, asked for a new one (offering to pay for both) & then got verbally attacked by the bartender. When they asked the security guys at the door for the manager, this is what happened! I hope they sue Blondies and the employees get arrested! If I lived in Florida, Blondies would never get a penny from me ever again! This is horrible & disgusting. Please help them & share this video. It could’ve happened to anyone of you out for your Sunday Funday.”
According to sources, when the alleged victim, Alexander Coelho, returned to the scene to try to explain to the cops how he had been treated by the Dirty Blondes security guards, Coelho was arrested on two charges, battery on an officer and disorderly conduct. Friends of Coelho say he and another victim in the incident are “both nice and not the type of kids to start problems with bouncers.”
When contacted regarding the incident, Dirty Blondes management declined comment.
Here is the number Fort Lauderdale police list on their website to “report a crime:” (954) 828-5700. Maybe we can urge them to arrests the bouncers who clearly committed battery on the patrons.
And here is the Facebook page to Dirty Blondes, the bar where this took place.
UPDATE: After getting slammed with negative comments on its Facebook page, Dirty Blonde’s began deleting the comments before offering the following statement:
We deeply regret the matter, which occurred at Dirty Blondes at approximately 7:00pm on Sunday, July 28.
This is by all accounts was an isolated incident, resulting when four patrons, two males and two females, were repeatedly asked to leave the bar.
While we do not condone the actions displayed in the 15-second video circulating, no further statements on what led up to, during or after the incident ensued will be issued until we review the matter internally with all parties involved.
The two men involved in the matter were subsequently arrested, one for pushing an officer after the incident, the other for returning to the property an hour later. At this time, no charges were made against any members of the staff, and management has pledged to cooperate with authorities should an investigation take place.
Management would however like to offer a sincere apology to patrons and those who bore witness to the unfortunate event while enjoying their Sunday afternoon.
Dirty Blonde’s (954) 728-9801
Email: DirtyBlondes@ItsBetterOnTheBeach.com
Website:
UPDATE II: PINAC reader Seth pointed out another video, posted below, from 2010 where a Dirty Blonde’s security punched a patron, but this one seems like it was an all-out fight, unlike the most recent one.
There is also a discussion on Reddit about the incident where somebody posted Coelho’s mugshot.
UPDATE III: A Facebook page titled Boycott Dirty Blondes’ has emerged and is asking if anybody has the names of the bouncers involved. At this time, the page has 154 likes, but that’s about to increase quickly as a lot of people down here are outraged at what they’ve seen in the video.
UPDATE IV: Another video has emerged that shows Fort Lauderdale police arresting the two men. The video is short but it doesn’t show any assault on a police officer and it surely doesn’t show any resistance.
UPDATE V: The most aggressive bouncer in the video has been identified as Kris Thomas, according to the Boycott Dirty Blondesnewly created Facebook page, which now has 397 likes and growing fast. There is also a LinkedIn page belonging to a Kris Thomas who lists his occupation as a bouncer at Dirty Blondes. He apparently also had a Facebook page but has since removed it, according to Boycott Dirty Blondes.
The bouncer who initiated the attack by walking up behind one of the men and placing him in a chokehold, pictured left below, has been identified as Jovan Tut Dean and is said to be the lead bouncer. Below that picture is a screenshot from his Facebook page.
The third bouncer has been identified as Michael Colon, according to the Boycott Dirty Blondes Facebook page, which has been getting its information from a multitude of people in the community who are outraged over the video.
UPDATE VI: The mainstream media is jumping aboard this story with a short little blurb identifying the second man arrested as David Parker.
UPDATE VII: There is a fourth bouncer that needs to be identified. He can be seen at the very end punching David Parker out. This is the best image we have of him.
