Holly MatkinCleveland, OH – A group of Taco Bell customers turned the tables on a gun-wielding man on Tuesday when they took his weapon away and beat him with it.
The incident occurred on Feb. 26 at a Taco Bell Cantina restaurant on Euclid Avenue, The Plain Dealer reported.
In addition to its regular fast-food menu, the Cantina has a bar that features local beers on tap and “Twisted Freezes,” an alcohol infused take on their popular slushie drinks, according to WEWS.
At approximately 10 p.m., a 37-year-old man barged into the store and began yelling at one of the customers inside, Taco Bell employees told police.
The irate man then spit towards the feet of several other customers who were standing nearby.
When a group of unimpressed customers confronted him over his belligerent behavior, he drew a firearm out of his waistband.
Undeterred, the mob closed in on the man and overpowered him.
They commandeered his weapon, then used it to repeatedly pistol-whip him in the head.
The customers ended up chasing the suspect out of the store, and police found him outside, bleeding from a deep gash on his forehead.
An ambulance responded to the scene, and the unnamed suspect was transported to St. Vincent Charity Medical Center to be treated for his injuries.
He also underwent a mental health evaluation, police said.
Investigators recovered the airsoft gun from the patio of a nearby restaurant, and seized it into evidence.
It was unclear whether or not the customers realized the suspect’s weapon was an airsoft gun when they decided to take it away from him.
The suspect had not been criminally charged in connection with the incident as of Thursday, police said.