VIRGINIA BEACH — A video that’s been watched more than 9 million times has led Virginia Beach prosecutors to consider pressing felony charges against a man allegedly involved in an assault at an Oceanfront entertainment venue.
The video, which was taken inside of Shaka’s Live and posted on Facebook by MediaTakeOut on Jan. 26, shows a group of onlookers watching two men yelling and pacing.
One of the men appears to be walking toward the front door of the 2014 Atlantic Ave. nightclub, when a third man, dressed in a white shirt and black pants, grabs him and pushes him into a wooden table before picking him up and throwing him to the ground.
Social media posts referred to the third man as a security guard. It was not immediately clear if he was working security.
The man on the ground appeared to be knocked unconscious.
The video below may be disturbing to some.
Southside Daily attempted to contact representatives from Shaka’s Live three times but did not receive a comment via phone or email before publication.
The incident happened between 7:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Jan. 25. It was reported to the Virginia Beach Police Department the next day via the crime reporting unit, which takes statements over the phone, said Master Police Officer Linda Kuehn.
Also on Jan. 26, the VBPD got a report about the video, which began circulating online that day.
Kuehn said that the victim survived the alleged attack and took out at least one citizen warrant in connection with the incident.
“Citizens can go to a magistrate and obtain a warrant,” Kuehn said, adding that citizens are only able to take out warrants for misdemeanor crimes. “Felonies are going to require a police officer or detective.”
Kuehn could not confirm how many citizen warrants the person may have taken out, what type of crime or crimes they alleged to have happened or what type of testimony they may have given to a magistrate when taking the warrants out.
Kuehn said that the case is currently “being screened by the Commonwealth’s Attorney.”
“They will determine if felony charges will be pursued,” Kuehn said.
