Man with an axe ‘menacing’ customers at New York McDonald’s

• Michael Palacios, 31, was arrested and charged with criminal mischief.
• Three counts of menacing and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon.
• A graphic video of the incident was captured and published on TikTok.

A man in New York City was arrested on Friday after “menacing” customers at a McDonald’s with a small axe, according to police. The incident was captured on video and shared on TikTok. After appearing to be removed, the video was reposted and circulated on Twitter, showing two minutes of the incident between the man and several fast food patrons. The video, which has over 14 million views, depicted several incidents, including a series of fights and property destruction.

The man in the video then appears to take his backpack off and pull out what appears to be a small axe. He smashed the end of a table at the location with the axe and shattered a glass barrier. He then approached several customers with the axe, but did not appear to inflict any harm with it.

After punching a customer and approaching several others with the axe, the man appears to leave with his bicycle at the end of the video. According to police, no victims were injured.

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A spokesperson for the New York Police Department told TODAY that officers responded to the incident at approximately 2:25 a.m. at the McDonald’s on Delancey Street in Manhattan’s Lower East Side neighbourhood.

“When officers arrived, witnesses at the scene reported that the suspect got into a physical altercation with three unknown males inside the location,” the spokesperson said. “The suspect took an axe from his backpack and threatened the unidentified males.” The suspect purposefully damaged the establishment’s property. Responding officers took the individual into custody.”

Michael Palacios, 31, was arrested and charged with criminal mischief, menacing, and criminal possession of a weapon.

“The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority,” McDonald’s owner-operator Paul Hendel said in a statement to TODAY. “These acts of violence in our restaurant have shocked us, and we are fully cooperating with the authorities in their investigation.”

Jamie Niskanen-Singer, Palacios’ attorney, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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