During the Euro Cup celebrations on Sunday after Italy's win against England, the streets of Bradford erupted with a sea of fans cheering and waving Italian flags throughout the downtown core.
But the happy celebration took a turn when a group of men assaulted the owners of Hacienda Santa Teresa Mexican restaurant after being denied entrance into the establishment for not wearing masks and trying to bring in their own cooler.
At around 6:30 p.m., during the peak of the celebrations, three men approached the front outdoor patio of the restaurant and requested access inside the building.
Owner Juan Velazquez states the server on duty at the time denied the men access due to not wearing masks. That is when ‘things got crazy’.
“We were prepared no matter what the outcome of the game was,” explained Velazquez, who had just hired new staff and had his family helping him at the restaurant that day. “We expected Italy to win, then people started coming out.”
Velazquez claims he noticed his server in distress when the three men continued to pressure her for access inside the restaurant. So, he stepped in and reiterated the mask-wearing policy before being allowed inside.
“We were selling drinks at our [mobile] bar out front [and] the back patio was half-packed with mostly families at the time,” he says. “None of the people in the back had any clue what was happening out in the front.”
Velazquez states that one of the men claimed he had a ‘medical condition’ and was exempt from wearing a mask, but Velazquez refused entry because one of the men in the party was carrying a cooler with unknown contents.
“We assumed alcohol was inside,” he admits, adding the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario had visited the restaurant the night before and, Velazquez was being extra cautious.
After denying the group entry, Velazquez says a fourth man entered the verbal dispute.
“They started pushing, trying to get inside, so I had to push back,” he explains, adding that additional bystanders were ‘trash talking’ him in support of the four men who initiated the attack. “Someone threw a punch and I called for help!”
One of his pregnant servers called for Velazquez's brother, Jose, to help. While Velazquez was ‘pinned down’ by two men inside the front entranceway, his brother was thrown into one of the restaurant’s patio tables outside where he was repeatedly punched by two other men.
“My mom was crying hysterically shouting ‘we’re being attacked!’” he recalls.
Multiple injuries were sustained during the altercation including ripped shirts and shoes. Velazquez says he suffered a head and eye injury, as well as pain to his chest and hands, and cuts on his knees.
Jose, who was ‘banged up’ and bruised after being launched into a table, says he has pre-existing back problems which were made worse from the attack.
A new camera system was recently installed outside the restaurant and between the old and new cameras, video surveillance was able to capture the fight, from both inside and outside.
“I was attacked so I definitely want to show the footage from the inside, but it’s a new system,” he says, explaining that the family is working with South Simcoe Police to retrieve various parts of the video clips for the ongoing investigation.
“During that video, I was still inside being pinned down by two guys and knocked out,” he recalls. “I had to fight back and the only way I could get him off me was to grab his crotch.”
Velaquez recalls one of his regular female customers witnessed the brawl and tried to intervene but was ‘elbowed down to the ground’ and sustained a black eye.
“Another customer tried to help Jose and grabbed a guy on top of him… I don’t know if he was hurt but thank you for what you did,” says Velazquez.
The Velazquez family says South Simcoe Police arrived almost immediately and broke up the fight, sending the men away from the scene with no arrests.
“There were six police officers in total in the whole area, but only three were at my patio during the fight,” describes Velazquez. “They told us they were ‘undermanned’ and would be back to grab my footage after.”
Velazquez adds that one of the men returned while police were still present, and an additional altercation occurred between one of the officers and the man as they attempted to keep him away from the restaurant.
“I understand [South Simcoe Police] didn’t want to escalate the situation, I think they made the right choice," he said, adding that he wishes there were more officers on duty that night.
Velazquez fears the men will return again. He claims many threats were made to him during the brawl.
“They know where we are, we can’t hide or move, they know when we’re open – that’s our fear and we hope South Simcoe Police can do something about this quick,” he says. “We don’t want them anywhere near us.”
Velazquez and his family are strongly considering hiring security, especially for weekends.
“I am not a confrontational person at all, we have a 19-year-old pregnant girl here working with us, my mom and my aunt are here…” he says. “It was a busy day, but we were in shock. I’m happy everybody else stepped up to help – thank you!”
Despite the unfortunate ending to what should have been a celebratory evening for the family, the Velazquez family say they will continue to support the community and offer ongoing promotions and contests, as well as continue their charitable contributions to those in need.
“We have a good relationship with the South Simcoe Police and will continue to aid them in their investigation,” he says.
