Security guard arrested for multiple assaults at Providence G nightclub
PROVIDENCE, R.I. March 1 2020 Providence Police have arrested a bouncer who works at the Providence G for allegedly assaulting two patrons during an altercation earlier this month.
Major David Lapatin said Lawrence Livingstone, 38, has been charged with felony assault on one man and simple assault on another. Livingstone struck one man three times in the head and one time in the back with what appeared to be a flashlight, according to Lapatin.
That victim received 17 staples to the head in the hospital, according to the police report.
Detectives obtained surveillance video from surrounding businesses that provided a clearer picture of what happened than the Providence G video did, according to Lapatin.
Lapatin said more arrests are possible, and police plan to bring the case before the Providence Board of Licenses to consider possible action against the bar’s license.
The incident — first reported by Target 12 — happened outside the Providence G building in the early morning hours of Feb. 9, when three patrons claim they were assaulted by security staff after being asked to leave the lobby, which is downstairs from the rooftop bar.
The patrons claim they were “followed and assaulted by several of the nightclub’s security staff,” according to the police report. One man told police the group was walking down Dorrance Street toward Weybosset Street when they were approached by the security guards, and a verbal altercation ensued.
One patron claimed he was “sucker punched” by a security guard, according to the report, which started the physical fight.
The men said they broke free and realized one of them was “bleeding severely from his head,” and they called an Uber to go to Rhode Island Hospital.
One of the men received 17 staples to his head, according to the report, and another got five staples.
A spokesperson for the Providence G previously denied the patrons’ version of events, writing in a statement that it was the security staffer – not the patron – who was sucker punched.
On Friday, spokesperson Sarah Dell said Livingstone — an employee of security company NES Solutions — “will no longer be allowed to work on any of our properties.”
“It important to note that the incident in question happened outside of the Providence G, on the corner of Dorrance Street and Weybosset Street, after several disruptive, belligerent customers were asked to leave our property,” Dell said.
The security staff members are employees of NES Solutions, not the Providence G. Wayne Fantasia, the security company’s owner, also previously denied the patrons’ version of events.
Fantasia said Friday that Livingstone has been placed on administrative leave
“NES Solutions has been and will continue to fully cooperate with the Providence Police department in their investigation,” Fantasia said.
Livingstone was arraigned Friday morning and released on personal recognizance, according to court records.
WPRI
