Mass chicken shop brawl after man tries to pay with Rizla

A man tried to buy some chips with seven Rizlas at a takeaway, sparking a massive brawl.

Anthony McLean, 29, was arrested on June 22 after the emergency services were called to the scene, the Gazette reports.

Things escalated so much that charity boxes and chairs were apparently being used as weapons in the dramatic drunken ***** at Perfect Chicken in Middlesborough.

‘[McLean] said “can I get a portion of chips”, so I asked him for £1.40,’ chicken shop owner Sheraz Butt told Teesside Magistrates’ Court.

‘He started getting me the Rizlas and said they were worth 20p each.

‘I said, “That is not money, it is a cigarette Rizla”.

‘But he said, “No, it is money”.’

McLean was accused of then hurling a charity collection tin at Butt and throwing the cook, Tofeek Khan, to the floor and trying to punch and kick him.

When officers arrived they said they found McLean topless in the shop, and arrested him after viewing the CCTV footage.

However, when asked why the footage wasn’t available to the court, PC Steven Neale said it was because police had failed to collect it in time.

Defence solicitor Paul Dixon also claimed there were ‘discrepancies’ in the pair’s police statements and their testimonies in court.

However PC Neale later also admitted that Mr Khan, who appeared in court with a translator, should have also had one when he gave his statement to police.

Magistrates found McLean not guilty of two charges of assault by beating.