An Orlando man is accused of punching a Gainesville restaurant manager in the face and hiding in a nearby restaurant’s Dumpster area early Thursday morning.
Mathew James Brewer, 21, was arrested at 1:15 a.m. after fleeing the Gainesville Ale House on Archer Road and jumping a fence to hide near a dumpster in the adjacent Texas Roadhouse restaurant.
Earlier that night, the manager of Gainesville Ale House told Brewer that the restaurant would no longer serve him alcohol because he was intoxicated, according to a Gainesville Police Department arrest report. The manager asked Brewer and other people he was with to leave immediately.
When Brewer refused, the manager dialed 911. While the manager was on the phone with an officer, Brewer allegedly pushed him into the front doors of the building. Brewer then punched the manager on the left side of his jaw, which was caught on a security camera. The punch left a visible red mark and swelling.
After the fight, Brewer took off on foot and ran again when he saw a police officer who had arrived on the scene.
A foot chase ensued, and after the police officer yelled, “Stop! Police! Stop!” the officer lost sight of Brewer, according to the police report.
Witnesses nearby told the policeman that they saw Brewer jump a 6-foot concrete wall and locked gate to hide in an outdoor Dumpster.
The officer found him and arrested Brewer without incident.
Brewer was arrested for felony burglary, simple battery and resisting arrest without violence. He is being held on $25,000 bond, according to the Alachua County jail, and remained in custody as of 4 p.m. Thursday.
Contact Shelby Webb at swebb@alligator.org.
