Shaq appearance at Big Chicken restaurant leads to brawl between fans and cops
‘They got their five minutes of YouTube fame. I’m just not sure that’s how they wanted, especially with the criminal charges. So there you have it’
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Three people have been arrested after a mass brawl broke out at a chicken shop in Michigan where NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal was making a guest appearance.
William Prieto, 21, Abigail Strong, 21, and Holly Strong, 48, were all charged following the incident in which an officer was forced to draw and deploy his taser.
Footage provided by the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office showed a large crowd of people jostling outside the Big Chicken in Hartland on Friday, where O’Neal – who is affiliated with the chain – was eating.
According to the sheriff’s office, Prieto became “confrontational” and, when a deputy attempted to contact him “took a swing” at the officer, causing him to draw his taser.
“At that time, a 48-year-old Brighton resident who was with the 21-year-old male attempted to disarm the deputy and was joined by her daughter, a 21-year-old, in obstructing the deputy from taking the 21-year-old male into custody for the attempted assault on an officer,” the force said.
Two other deputies on scene went to the aid of the first deputy and attempted to move the two women out of the way and take the male subject into custody.
When the deputy moved the Strongs out of the way they fell to the ground. Seeing this, Prieto attacked the deputy from behind attempting to put him in a headlock or chokehold, according to the sheriff’s office.
At this point the other two deputies fired Tasers, but they had no effect. The three deputies were able to wrestle Prieto into handcuffs and secure him.
Deputies later found a BB gun in his bag, made to look like a pistol.
"I mean, what are we supposed to do? Are we supposed to let this, you know, 250-pound guy, you know, beat up my deputy for whatever reason," Livingston County Sheriff Michael Murphy told Fox News. "That’s not the way it works."
"People started to get a little testy because they couldn’t get in, etc," Murphy added. "And then Shaq showed up. So that added a little bit to it."
The Strongs were advised that they were under arrest and continued to resist and attempt to flee but were also taken into custody.
“They got their five minutes of YouTube fame," Murphy told Fox. "I’m just not sure that’s how they wanted, especially with the criminal charges. So there you have it."
Prieto was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and resisting arrest. The Strongs were charged with three counts of resisting officers. All three were taken to Livingston County Jail.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, the deputy who was assaulted only sustained minor injuries.
The event with O’Neal continued without further incident.