In wake of melee, panel to review hookah bar
The Blow Hookah lounge on Park Ave. – next to Catanzaro’s Pizza and across from Nardolillo Funeral Home – was the scene of a large disturbance overnight Saturday, when multiple people were sent to the hospital after a stabbing led to one man driving his car into three people. Cranston Police are still looking for all of the participants in the brawl, though the man and woman who were in the car were taken into custody that night.
Now that the smoke has cleared, police have requested a “Show Cause” hearing for Blow Hookah Lounge in front of the City Council’s Safety Services and Licensing Committee, which would be held in special meeting on Wednesday, July 25.
Lt. Justin Dutra of the Cranston Police Department said Monday that they have had to deal with minor incidents at the hookah lounge in the past, but never anything this serious. Police decided to refer the matter to City Hall to review the bar and its policies.
As for the investigation into what exactly took place, Dutra said they first got reports that gunshots were fired around 1:00 a.m. Sunday morning and when police arrived a large group of people fled the area in their cars or on foot.
There were three victims with minor knife wounds, but nothing life threatening. They also found three people who had been struck by a car across the street in the parking lot of Nardolillo Funeral Home, one of who requested medical treatment and was brought to the hospital.
The man driving that vehicle was Michael Noth, 32, of 96 Fairmont Ave. in Providence, who was brought to the hospital due to a stab wound he had and was later charged with Assault with a Dangerous Weapon. The passenger in his car, Katerin Delarosa, 23, of 143 Greenwood St. in Cranston, was charged with Obstruction of Justice because of the way she acted when the Officers arrived on scene. Noth has been released on bail and Delarosa was also summonsed to appear in court.
Those were the only two arrests made and police are still looking for suspects in the confrontation that led to all of that.
Dutra said that they are currently reviewing video surveillance to determine what exact crimes occurred, who was involved, and what witnesses they may be able to talk to. He also said that they found from video that the initial gunshots came from someone who got a firearm from their trunk and fired shots into the air, not hitting anybody. They haven’t been able to identify that person yet either.
Dutra said that no physical altercation happened inside the bar, but they have gathered that the incident stemmed from an inappropriate touching of a female by a male inside the bar, though it wasn’t anything criminal that the male did. He said the argument then turned physical outside, and led to the assault with a car in the parking lot across the street.
Dutra said that Nardolillo Funeral Home could press charges if they had property damage, but they hadn’t yet and he added that the truck ended up just being lodged on a bush.
Mayor Allan Fung issued a statement about the incident:
“I commend our police officers and first responders for their quick response to this incident, which resulted in no loss of life and the apprehension of suspects,” he said. “There is no place for this type of violence in Cranston and my administration supports the police department as they continue to investigate the incident and review the operations of the club.”
Councilman Chris Paplauskas, who is the chair of the Safety Services and Licensing Committee, said the meeting Wednesday will have everything on the table, from the security plans of the lounge to what licenses they have and how they’re operating on a daily basis. It will also give a chance for the owners of the bar to explain what happened and why it happened, he said.
“Public safety is paramount and we want to make sure everybody is doing the right thing,” Paplauskas said.
Lt. Dutra said the hookah bar would operate as normal until the committee makes a decision. He also said that the investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to give it to the police department, even if they wish to do so anonymously.
Efforts to contact representatives of the hookah bar were unsuccessful.
