Beating “victim” started fight, says HBPD

CHARGES HAVE been dropped in connection with a March 11 incident at a downtown eatery in Huntington Beach.

There are two sides to every story, and the other side to an incident almost a month ago in Huntington Beach is reversing what at first seemed to be a brutal attack on an employee at a downtown eatery.

According to Officer Jennifer Marlett of the HBPD, the original take on the incident was that two men attacked an employee of the Thunder Burgz Pizza on Main Street just before 1 a.m. on March 11. Based on the statements of witnesses at the scene, police eventually arrested two Anaheim men.

But further investigation – including video evidence – told a different tale. “The Thunder Burgrz restaurant employee initially escalated the verbal confrontation by committing a battery on one of the subjects and invited him to fight in the alley.” The third person involved intervened, police said, to defend a family member.

In the light of the new information, police on Friday reported that charges have been dropped against the two Anaheim men. The employee – now believed to be the instigator – was hospitalized in stable condition for the injuries he sustained during the fight.