Overnight Saturday, Stettler RCMP members conducted a walk-through at Social Bo’s Bar in Stettler, as mandated by the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Act.
“Topless waitresses and exotic dancers” were advertised to be working inside the business, and after speaking with a bar employee, police determined that it was going to be a problematic issue.
Later, Stettler RCMP members attended a second time and had to remove an extremely intoxicated male from the bar because 29- and 36-year-old men were pushing each other back and forth.
Another man had extremely slurred speech and had to be held up when walking to his nearby hotel room.
At 1:21 a.m., investigators were called to the bar for a third time, as there was a report that there was fighting outside. The fight ended prior to police arriving, but a 24-year-old heavily intoxicated man was outside the bar and advised he was waiting for a ride. He was reported to have assaulted one of the employees, but was allowed to leave the area when his transportation arrived.
At 1:36 a.m., a 25-year-old man from Alix was yelling right outside of the bar doors so loud that RCMP members could hear him in the Esso parking lot about 50 metres away. He was arrested for causing a disturbance, and for assaulting a police officer from a Sept. 21 incident.
Previously at Social Bo’s, he aggressively slapped a Stettler investigator on the shoulder, while swearing, and then ran away to evade capture.
At 1:40 a.m., a 24-year-old man stumbled across Highway 12 and stopped in the middle of the roadway. An investigator spoke to the man from Pleasant View, P.E.I., and noted that he could not stand and had extremely slurred speech. He was eventually able to produce keys to his nearby hotel room.
At that time, investigators were advised of another fight where a male was sucker-punched in the face. A 43-year-old man from Ashton, Ont., was located at the back door behind the bar. He was extremely aggressive and an employee was trying to get him out the back door. The man was arrested for assault. He had to be assisted all the way to the police car, as he could barely stand.
Next, the 24-year-old man from P.E.I. was observed stumbling down the sidewalk along the bar, coming from the Esso parking lot. He was already advised to go home and members had watched him walk to his hotel and advised him not to return to the bar. He was arrested for public intoxication.
At 1:46 a.m., a 36-year-old man from West Devon, P.E.I., was observed pushing a bar employee. He was arrested for assault and escorted away from the crowd.
As the investigator was dealing with that man, a 32-year-old Stettler man and a 31-year-old man from Okotoks started aggressively fighting with each other. Both were arrested for assault and causing a disturbance. They were also both charged with resisting arrest, as they were both extremely violent with investigators.
As investigators dealt with prisoners in the police vehicles, they were required to return to the bar to control the large crowd of people. A 29-year-old man from Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., was arrested for causing a disturbance for yelling and swearing. He was also charged for resisting arrest.
At that time, a 35-year-old West Devon, P.E.I., man was arrested for causing a disturbance and resisting arrest. He was also highly intoxicated.
Also, a drunk and belligerent 23-year-old man from Kamloops, B.C., was arrested and charged with causing a disturbance and resisting arrest.
The attending RCMP members were forced to call in back-up members. The investigators on shift were out of handcuffs and there was no more room in police vehicles to transport prisoners to detachment cells.
Lastly, a 19-year-old Stettler man was instructed to leave the bar as he was extremely intoxicated. He refused to leave and was arrested for public intoxication. He was charged with possession of a controlled substance, as he had a quantity of cannabis resin in his possession.
The incident was extremely dangerous for the police and the general public. There were multiple bottles outside with liquor in them that had to be dumped out. There were multiple staggering drunk people walking all around the road, the highway and laying in the ditch.
When police were dealing with the fights, large crowds of people would swarm around and refused to back up. The intoxicated people would crowd around the police cars and, at one time, a female was observed laying on the hood of the police car, with 10 to 15 people crowded around the cruiser. Police directed this crowd to disperse, but when investigators would deal with a fight, the crowd returned.
As a result of the wild night, the following charges were laid: six counts of causing a disturbance and six counts of resisting arrest, one count of obstruction, and one count of possession of a controlled substance.
Two prisoners were arrested for public intoxication and released when sober, without charges.
This is the third Stettler case forwarded to the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission, within a few weeks.
The Town of Stettler officials have been notified of the incident and the Stettler RCMP detachment will step up enforcement actions at the establishment. Problems at this location have been ongoing.