No heat for Eataly baker?
Disgruntled employee accused of pulling gun during brawl to face no charges
A disgruntled baker won’t face charges after the gun he pulled on two co-workers discharged during a fight at the Italian marketplace Eataly on the Near North Side, police said Monday.
No one was shot, and the 35-yearold gunman was taken to a hospital for injuries he suffered during the brawl, Chicago police said Monday.
The incident unfolded about 9:20 a.m. Friday inside the restaurant at 43 E. Ohio St. after the baker was asked to leave a planned meeting with human resources, according to a police report.
He was not fired, but he was not scheduled to work either, according to the report, which said a security guard spotted him outside smoking a cigarette while he talked on the phone, “complaining about the meeting.”
That’s when police said the 35-year-old suspect made his way to the second-floor bakery prep area and confronted two men who are also bakers.
A man doing refrigeration repairs saw the dust-up. What started as an argument grew into a brawl, during which all three bakers “threw punches,” the report said.
Another witness and a 42-yearold man, also employed as a baker, then saw the suspect pull a gun. As they sprinted away, terrified, they heard what they thought were two or three gunshots, according to the report.
Eataly’s video surveillance captured some of the fight, including the moment when one of the bakers punched the suspect again, knocking him to the floor.
Both bakers fled with the gun. The 35-year-old suspect was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in good condition.
The suspect has a valid firearm owner’s identification card but is not a concealed carry license holder. He suffered redness and swelling to his face and was detained by police at the scene after being identified by one of the witnesses.
None of the participants in the brawl or witnesses could be reached for comment.