Bobby Valentine
Alleged victim Leidy Alcantara
Mugshots of the suspects
http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/localnews/ci_13410826
Woman beaten at Stamford bar after karaoke performance
By Monica Potts and Jeff Morganteen
Staff Writers
Posted: 09/24/2009 12:21:34 PM EDT
Updated: 09/25/2009 08:10:06 AM EDT
STAMFORD -- Police arrested six women and charged them in the assault of a 25-year-old woman following an argument over her singing performance during karaoke night at a a downtown bar and restaurant.
Stamford police Lt. Sean Cooney said the six women ages 19 to 20 made derogatory comments about the woman's singing ability -- or lack thereof -- and then repeatedly punched, kicked and pulled the hair of the victim before leaving Bobby Valentine's Sports Gallery and Cafe on Main Street.
The victim suffered a chipped tooth and numerous bruises, Cooney said. She was treated and released from Stamford Hospital.
In an telephone interview Thursday, the alleged victim, Leidy Alcantara, said she had just sung "A Dios Le Pido" by Colombian pop superstar Juanes and then stood next to the karaoke disc jockey. As she sang along to another performer's song, one of the women began exchanging words with her, she said.
Then it turned violent, she said.
"She came up to me and said I was annoying and punched me in the face," Alcantara said.
Alcantara said others pulled her hair and began kicking her, though she said she doesn't remember much of the assault. Her 24-year-old husband, Robby Alcantara, echoed his wife's story, saying she just finished her song and was singing along to another karaoke performer when one of the women confronted and then punched her.
"It was very upsetting, and I don't understand why if someone is going to have that type of an attitude, I don't know why they're there," Robby said, adding that he and his wife were on a dinner date that night. "I don't know why they have to be so violent."
Robby said bouncers kicked out the six women and then a restaurant manager called police. He and another patron also helped break up the fight, he said.
Cooney said a witness followed the women as they left the bar and walked south on Washington Boulvard, where police caught up with them near UBS. After they were detained, another witness was brought to the scene and positively identified them, Cooney said.
Witness statements were similar to the victim's, Cooney said.
One of the women, Michelle Rosedom, 19, of 233 Fairfield Ave., Stamford, had a different story. She said another woman, whom she does not know, started the argument with Alcantara when she told Alcantara she was singing too loudly. After an argument, Alcantara was the first to become physical, Rosedom said.
"She grabbed the lady, and she swung on her and it escalated from there," she said.
Rosedom said she and her friends were just standing near the stage getting ready to sing when the chaos ensued.
"The bouncers told us to leave," she said. "We couldn't perform our song."
She said Alcantara fell on the floor in the rush to get out of the bar, and that any injuries she sustained must have been from the fall and the rush out.
"Nobody ganged up on her, nobody pulled her hair, nobody stomped on her," she said.
Rosedom said she had nothing to do with the fight, and police targeted her and her friends because they were just a group of women walking away from the bar that fit the description. She said police were uninterested in her side of the story, and she does not understand why she now has to go to court.
The six -- all of whom were under 21 -- were charged with third-degree assault, conspiracy to commit third-degree assault and breach of peace.
Retracting a previous statement, Cooney said the main concern of police is the alleged violence. He said there were no indications that the group of six underage women were drinking. As of Wednesday evening, he said that the police would not pursue a referral about Bobby Valentine's to the state Liquor Control division of the state Department of Consumer Protection.
John Suchy, director of the liquor control division of the state Department of Consumer Protection in Hartford, said Bobby Valentine's has a "cafe" liquor permit, which prohibits minors from being in the same room as a bar.
He did not know anything of the incident and said that if Stamford police witnessed any violation of state liquor regulations, his division would be notified shortly.
A manager at Bobby Valentine's referred questions about the incident to attorney Phillip Hersh, who did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment.
The six arrested women -- Rosedom, along with Norwalk residents Martisa Chambers, of 56 Suncrest Road, Danielle Swanson, of 8 Fort Point St. and Chaniel McRae, of 84 Point St., and Deja Hines, of 53 Clinton Ave., Stamford, Kiana Strickland, of 46 Durant St., Stamford -- were released on $500 bond and are due in court on Oct. 5.
-- Staff Writer Monica Potts can be reached at monica.potts@scni.com or 964-2266. Staff Writer Jeff Morganteen can be reached at jeff.morganteen@scni.com or 203-964-2215.
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