Two strangers threw a man off a deck at Mad Murphy’s Cafe in Middletown.
Police responded to the bar at approximately 2:00 a.m. Sunday morning for reports of a disturbance. Richard Palma, 25, and Brian Makuch, 24, were arrested for allegedly throwing a third man off a first floor deck. When police responded the found the victim bleeding from the right side of his head. He also had a large abrasion that was red and swollen on his cheek.
The victim told police that he was talking to an old friend who was in the parking lot below the deck when the two white men, who were strangers, picked him up from behind and thrown him off the wooden deck. He subsequently landed on his head, though he also used his hands to break his fall. The victim pointed out the two suspects in the parking lot.
A witness statement confirmed the altercation and that the victim was thrown off the deck onto gravel.
Palma and Makuch are being charged with assault in the third degree. Palma was given an additional charge of possession of narcotics after police found a white substance wrapped in paper on his body. The substance tested positive for cocaine.
Both were released on a $5,000 non-surety bond and will appear in court on August 18.
