Metro Weekly

Patron Allegedly Stabbed by Bouncer at Gay Bar

Details remain unclear on what circumstances led to the stabbing at the Minneapolis bar that left a 27-year-old man with critical injuries.

The Saloon – Photo: Google screenshot

A man was critically injured after being stabbed during an altercation with a bouncer inside a gay bar in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The incident occurred around 2 a.m. on Saturday, December 28, at the Saloon, an LGBTQ venue located at the corner of Hennepin Avenue and 9th Street, reports The Minnesota Star Tribune.

The 27-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, had been stabbed and was transported by emergency medical personnel to a local hospital. He suffered critical injuries. 

Police have not yet disclosed the circumstances that led to the altercation.

The bouncer, a 33-year-old man from Newport, Minnesota, was also treated for injuries at a local hospital before being booked into the Hennepin County Jail on a charge of first-degree assault.

Christopher Bock, the CEO of the Saloon, said it’s unclear what precipitated the fight.

“I’m still trying to figure out if they knew each other and how they knew each other,” Bock told the Star Tribune

Bock added that video from surveillance cameras inside the bar offered “not very good angles” of the altercation.

“Nightclubs are tough,” Bock told the newspaper. “A lot of things happen.… For New Year’s Eve, we’re going to double down and bring in private security to add a couple more guys to the roster.”

Confrontations between staff or security and patrons at nightlife venues, although infrequent, can be part of the job at any establishment selling liquor.

Two years ago, a Minneapolis man was arrested after allegedly threatening the staff at 19 Bar, the city’s oldest continuously operating LGBTQ bar, and allegedly pulling out a .45 caliber Glock following a confrontation with a bartender.

That man, Conell Walter Harris, eventually pleaded guilty to one count of felony possession of a firearm, and was sentenced to 57 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. 

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