Murrieta Bar Security Guard Arrested On Suspicion Of Assaulting Woman
MURRIETA, CA July 9 2022— A security guard was arrested this week on suspicion of striking a woman and knocking her unconscious in late June outside Murrieta’s Cove Bar and Grill.
Kingtupu Logotala, 23, of Hemet and The Cove Bar and Grill’s security guard, was arrested the day after the incident in Hemet, according to the Murrieta Police Department. He was booked on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and battery causing serious injury at the Cois Bird Detention Center and has since been released on a $25,000 bond.
The incident left Ashly Guardino with serious injuries, including a basal skull fracture, she said. The married mother of two remains in recovery after over nine days of hospitalization.
A GoFundMe was set up to raise money toward medical and legal bills for Guardino and her wife Savannah Brawner.
Logotala was recorded in security camera footage reacting to a confrontation with Guardino after 2 a.m. on the morning of the incident.
“It appeared a verbal altercation took place prior to the physical altercation,” Murrieta Police Department Sgt. Miguel Garcia and Detective Ryan Hollenweger said over Facebook. “The investigation is ongoing and detectives remain in contact with the victim.”
Ashly Guardino, 38, is back at home and healing. She has hearing loss and a traumatic brain injury. She is still trying to process the confrontation.
Guardino told Patch that she is a regular at The Cove Bar and Grill, where she goes once a week to have a beer, dance and socialize.
“I always go home in an Uber,” she said. “I always tell security that I’m there by myself and to keep an eye out for me and make sure I get to my Uber okay and they do. The bartenders know me. That night, there was a new security guard on duty, and that is the man who hit me.”
According to Guardino, she was waiting for her Uber when Logotala, began heckling her.
“He was calling me names, laughing at what I was saying,” she said.
After a verbal altercation began, she alleges he punched her once in the face, knocking her backward.
Video from the scene shows that she was pushed down. Minutes later she lunged toward him, the video shows. He punched her a second time in the face and she fell to the ground, unconscious, the video shows.
“He didn’t like me, and that’s the only explanation I have for the way he treated me,” she said. “I don’t know why he did that. Sadly, he’s ruined his life and used poor judgment.”
The restaurant issued a statement in response to the allegations.
“The Cove is deeply saddened about the events that occurred last week. After closing, one of our customers was assaulted by a man in the parking lot in front of The Cove. The man was not an employee of The Cove. Rather, he worked for a private company that The Cove hired solely to provide security services. The man was not acting on behalf of The Cove or as a security guard at the time of the assault and was off-duty. The Cove has been cooperating with the Murrieta Police Department and their investigation into this incident. The man seen on the tape committing the assault has been arrested and has been banned from the premises. We are also re-evaluating our security contracts to ensure that any company providing security for The Cove has properly licensed and background checked employees working for them. We want to ensure that an incident like this can never happen again and that The Cove remains a safe place for our guests, even after we have closed. Our hearts go out to the person of this assault and we wish her a quick recovery.”
What disturbs both Guardino and her wife, Brawner, was that barely anyone intervened during the altercation though several people were visible on the video.
“No one stood up for me,” Guardino said. “So after I was hit the first time, I had a very bad concussion. I was bleeding from the head and I was forced to defend myself alone against this large man while people stood around and watched. Disgusting.”
Brawner and Guardino are parents to a 3-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son. They work in real estate as transaction coordinators, a hectic industry in an uncertain market.
“Ashly goes out once a week to dance and unwind. I went to bed, and when I awoke at 6:30 a.m. I realized she hadn’t come home.”
A quick find my iPhone app check showed Guardino was at Inland Valley Hospital since around 2:30 a.m.
One frantic call later, Brawner learned what happened. Hospital workers said she should come right away.
“Ashly was beaten, concussed, confused and severely injured,” she said. “She couldn’t remember my phone number.”
After one night at home, Brawner knew something was wrong.
“Ashly almost died that night,” she said. “We took her to the emergency room at Temecula Valley Hospital.”
There, doctors found what was missed at Inland Valley Hospital: a basal skull fracture. They monitored her spinal fluid for issues and hospitalized her for another week of healing and care. Now, she is back at home, unable to work as she recovers.
The knowledge that the man who allegedly attacked her was a 23-year-old, 350-pound man is hard to understand, she said.
“He’s young and large,” she said. “My assumption is that he has lived his life being bigger than most… He’s a kid. (Hitting a woman) is not the real world, nor how adults conduct themselves.”
The couple is leaning on family support as they process what has happened and work with investigators to learn what’s next, they said.
“We posted a GoFundMe to help ease the burden and are hoping that none of her injuries are permanent,” Brawner said. “People have been rallying.”
As of this report, more than $3,200 has been raised.
Anyone with information is asked to please contact Detective Ryan Hollenweger at (951) 461-6361 or Sergeant Miguel Garcia at (951) 461-6362. The case will be forwarded to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office for filing when the investigation is complete.
