3 Men Charged in Viral Alabama Waterfront Brawl, Police Say More Charges Likely

Harriott riverboat.Photo:Julie Bennett/GettyPolice in Alabama have announced that three men face assault charges after a viral boat brawl that drew widespread attention online.Montgomery Police Chief Darryl J. Albert said at a news conference Tuesday that more charges are “likely” coming as the investigation into the riverside brawl continues this week.Albert announced that Richard Roberts, 48, has been charged with two counts of third-degree assault, while Allen Todd, 23, and Zachary Shipman, 25 were each charged with one count of third-degree assault.Albert also said police have asked Reggie Gray, a 42-year-old man allegedly seen hitting a woman over the head with a folding chair, to come in for questioning.PEOPLE confirmed that Roberts, who police allege struck a 16-year-old during the fight, had turned himself in as of Tuesday afternoon. The Montgomery Police Department released his mugshot Wednesday morning.Richard Roberts.Montgomery Police DepartmentA spokesperson for the Montgomery Police Department and Mayor Steven L. Reed did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for an update on police’s communication with Todd and Shipman, or whether they had turned themselves in as of Wednesday morning.It’s not clear if any of the suspects have entered pleas or retained attorneys.“As we identify additional folks that we need to talk to, we will ask them to come in and we’ll try to locate them and do further investigation to see if the charges are appropriate,” Albert told reporters, according toCNN.The outlet reported 13 people were detained and interviewed on Saturday after the minutes-long brawl along a dock in Montgomery. All 13 individuals were released from police custody, CNN reported.“I don’t think we’re near finished,” Albert, the police chief, said. “We have a lot more work to do on this.”Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed.Julie Bennett/GettyAlbert said police are reviewing “hundreds” of videos and statements taken Saturday and the public should expect more developments coming as the fallout from the brawl continues. “I would say at this point it is highly likely that more arrests and more individuals will face charges,” the police chief said.The fight, which broke out after a dispute over a pontoon boat blocking a large riverboat’s place to dock, was captured from multiple angles later shared on social media. The pontoon boat had blocked the riverboat for nearly an hour, according to police.Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.Videos show the brawl begin after Damien Pickett, a Black co-captain on the Harriott II riverboat, confronts a group of apparently White men about their pontoon boat after witnesses say the riverboat delivered several requests over a loudspeaker for the smaller boat to move. Pickett is seen arguing with the group when a White man rushes in to punch him, sparking a melee that spilled all across the dock.”The co-captain was doing his job,’’ Albert told reporters Tuesday, according toAL.com. Pickett was treated at a local hospital for injuries he suffered during the fight, the outlet reported.The Harriott riverboat.Julie Bennett/GettyPEOPLE has reached out to Harriott II’s Cpt. Jim Kittrell, whotoldThe Daily Beasthe believes the initial attack against Pickett was racially motivated.“The white guys that attacked my deckhand—and he was a senior deckhand first mate—I can’t think of any other reason they attacked him other than it being racially motivated,” Kittrell told the outlet.However, Kittrell said the ensuing brawl that unfolded was more “shipmates trying to help a shipmate,” rather than a fight split along racial lines.“They could’ve been little green men, for all they cared,” Kittrell told the outlet. “When they attacked Damien, my crew was gonna jump out and do the best they could to help him out. It was my crew against the people who attacked their shipmate, that’s all it was.”

Harriott riverboat.Photo:Julie Bennett/Getty

Julie Bennett/Getty

Police in Alabama have announced that three men face assault charges after a viral boat brawl that drew widespread attention online.Montgomery Police Chief Darryl J. Albert said at a news conference Tuesday that more charges are “likely” coming as the investigation into the riverside brawl continues this week.Albert announced that Richard Roberts, 48, has been charged with two counts of third-degree assault, while Allen Todd, 23, and Zachary Shipman, 25 were each charged with one count of third-degree assault.Albert also said police have asked Reggie Gray, a 42-year-old man allegedly seen hitting a woman over the head with a folding chair, to come in for questioning.PEOPLE confirmed that Roberts, who police allege struck a 16-year-old during the fight, had turned himself in as of Tuesday afternoon. The Montgomery Police Department released his mugshot Wednesday morning.Richard Roberts.Montgomery Police DepartmentA spokesperson for the Montgomery Police Department and Mayor Steven L. Reed did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for an update on police’s communication with Todd and Shipman, or whether they had turned themselves in as of Wednesday morning.It’s not clear if any of the suspects have entered pleas or retained attorneys.“As we identify additional folks that we need to talk to, we will ask them to come in and we’ll try to locate them and do further investigation to see if the charges are appropriate,” Albert told reporters, according toCNN.The outlet reported 13 people were detained and interviewed on Saturday after the minutes-long brawl along a dock in Montgomery. All 13 individuals were released from police custody, CNN reported.“I don’t think we’re near finished,” Albert, the police chief, said. “We have a lot more work to do on this.”Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed.Julie Bennett/GettyAlbert said police are reviewing “hundreds” of videos and statements taken Saturday and the public should expect more developments coming as the fallout from the brawl continues. “I would say at this point it is highly likely that more arrests and more individuals will face charges,” the police chief said.The fight, which broke out after a dispute over a pontoon boat blocking a large riverboat’s place to dock, was captured from multiple angles later shared on social media. The pontoon boat had blocked the riverboat for nearly an hour, according to police.Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.Videos show the brawl begin after Damien Pickett, a Black co-captain on the Harriott II riverboat, confronts a group of apparently White men about their pontoon boat after witnesses say the riverboat delivered several requests over a loudspeaker for the smaller boat to move. Pickett is seen arguing with the group when a White man rushes in to punch him, sparking a melee that spilled all across the dock.”The co-captain was doing his job,’’ Albert told reporters Tuesday, according toAL.com. Pickett was treated at a local hospital for injuries he suffered during the fight, the outlet reported.The Harriott riverboat.Julie Bennett/GettyPEOPLE has reached out to Harriott II’s Cpt. Jim Kittrell, whotoldThe Daily Beasthe believes the initial attack against Pickett was racially motivated.“The white guys that attacked my deckhand—and he was a senior deckhand first mate—I can’t think of any other reason they attacked him other than it being racially motivated,” Kittrell told the outlet.However, Kittrell said the ensuing brawl that unfolded was more “shipmates trying to help a shipmate,” rather than a fight split along racial lines.“They could’ve been little green men, for all they cared,” Kittrell told the outlet. “When they attacked Damien, my crew was gonna jump out and do the best they could to help him out. It was my crew against the people who attacked their shipmate, that’s all it was.”

Police in Alabama have announced that three men face assault charges after a viral boat brawl that drew widespread attention online.

Montgomery Police Chief Darryl J. Albert said at a news conference Tuesday that more charges are “likely” coming as the investigation into the riverside brawl continues this week.Albert announced that Richard Roberts, 48, has been charged with two counts of third-degree assault, while Allen Todd, 23, and Zachary Shipman, 25 were each charged with one count of third-degree assault.

Albert also said police have asked Reggie Gray, a 42-year-old man allegedly seen hitting a woman over the head with a folding chair, to come in for questioning.PEOPLE confirmed that Roberts, who police allege struck a 16-year-old during the fight, had turned himself in as of Tuesday afternoon. The Montgomery Police Department released his mugshot Wednesday morning.

Richard Roberts.Montgomery Police Department

Montgomery Police Department

A spokesperson for the Montgomery Police Department and Mayor Steven L. Reed did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for an update on police’s communication with Todd and Shipman, or whether they had turned themselves in as of Wednesday morning.

It’s not clear if any of the suspects have entered pleas or retained attorneys.“As we identify additional folks that we need to talk to, we will ask them to come in and we’ll try to locate them and do further investigation to see if the charges are appropriate,” Albert told reporters, according toCNN.

The outlet reported 13 people were detained and interviewed on Saturday after the minutes-long brawl along a dock in Montgomery. All 13 individuals were released from police custody, CNN reported.“I don’t think we’re near finished,” Albert, the police chief, said. “We have a lot more work to do on this.”

Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed.Julie Bennett/Getty

Albert said police are reviewing “hundreds” of videos and statements taken Saturday and the public should expect more developments coming as the fallout from the brawl continues. “I would say at this point it is highly likely that more arrests and more individuals will face charges,” the police chief said.

The fight, which broke out after a dispute over a pontoon boat blocking a large riverboat’s place to dock, was captured from multiple angles later shared on social media. The pontoon boat had blocked the riverboat for nearly an hour, according to police.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Videos show the brawl begin after Damien Pickett, a Black co-captain on the Harriott II riverboat, confronts a group of apparently White men about their pontoon boat after witnesses say the riverboat delivered several requests over a loudspeaker for the smaller boat to move. Pickett is seen arguing with the group when a White man rushes in to punch him, sparking a melee that spilled all across the dock.”The co-captain was doing his job,’’ Albert told reporters Tuesday, according toAL.com. Pickett was treated at a local hospital for injuries he suffered during the fight, the outlet reported.

The Harriott riverboat.Julie Bennett/Getty

PEOPLE has reached out to Harriott II’s Cpt. Jim Kittrell, whotoldThe Daily Beasthe believes the initial attack against Pickett was racially motivated.

“The white guys that attacked my deckhand—and he was a senior deckhand first mate—I can’t think of any other reason they attacked him other than it being racially motivated,” Kittrell told the outlet.

However, Kittrell said the ensuing brawl that unfolded was more “shipmates trying to help a shipmate,” rather than a fight split along racial lines.

“They could’ve been little green men, for all they cared,” Kittrell told the outlet. “When they attacked Damien, my crew was gonna jump out and do the best they could to help him out. It was my crew against the people who attacked their shipmate, that’s all it was.”

source: people.com