26-year-old bar worker is shot to death while trying to break up fight, Florida cops say
An employee of a Florida bar was killed when a fighting patron pulled out a gun, a sheriff’s office said.
Around 1 a.m. on Feb. 2, two patrons inside Norton’s Riverside Bar and Grill in Crystal River got into an argument, according to a news release from the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office.
The two patrons, including 24-year-old Gabrial Hugh Trainor, took the fight from inside the bar to the outside patio and continued to argue, deputies said.
Employee Edward James Bennis, 26, stepped in and “verbally attempted to stop the argument,” the sheriff’s office said.
Trainor left the patio and walked to his car, deputies said, and Bennis followed him a few minutes later.
Bennis and Trainor started arguing again when Trainor pulled out a handgun, the sheriff’s office said.
Deputies did not say whether Trainor was armed while in the bar or if he retrieved the gun from his car.
Trainor shot Bennis multiple times, according to the sheriff’s office.
Deputies arrived to find Bennis with gunshot wounds in the bar’s parking lot, where he died.
“This is a tragic incident. My condolences go out to the family of Mr. Bennis,” Sheriff Mike Prendergast said in the release. “Unfortunately, arguments too often turn violent when alcohol is involved.”
Trainor was arrested on a second-degree murder charge and is being held without bond, the sheriff’s office said.
In a post on Facebook, Norton’s Riverside Bar and Grill said it would be closed on Feb. 2 “due to unforeseen circumstances,” and would open again on Feb. 3.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with our Norton’s family today,” the restaurant said.
Crystal River is about 80 miles north of Tampa.
This story was originally published February 2, 2024 at 12:41 PM with the headline "26-year-old bar worker is shot to death while trying to break up fight, Florida cops say."
