Man breaks up brawl on Venice Boardwalk by driving bike cab into fight
LOS ANGELES - A pedicab driver on the Venice boardwalk was seen on video using his bike to break up a brawl.
The video, posted to "Street People of Los Angeles" on Instagram, gained more than 600,000 views in just a few hours Thursday. The video shows two people throwing punches Wednesday afternoon, before the pedicab driver runs them over with his bike, separating the two.
"The guy’s head was bouncing off the concrete," said Zackory Foster, a driver for Beach Buggy. "I think I accidentally hit both of them. Sorry guys, I didn’t mean to hurt you."
In the video, Foster was seen wearing a cowboy hat while separating the people fighting. Several people were also seen nearby watching, while at least one was recording cellphone video.
"Men with their families [were] right there," said Foster. "They’re just watching this happen. It’s disgusting to me. It makes me sick. That’s why, I’m always the type of person to step in."
Drivers for Beach Buggy say it’s common to see violence while driving tourists around Venice.
"It’s been a little crazy and now that we’re in summer the crazies are out in full force," said Troy Dalmasso, captain for Beach Buggy. "It’s pretty sad. I do worry about my drivers."
Just a few weeks ago, Foster said he was jumped and beaten while at work. The attack left him badly bruised.
"I got a really bad concussion," said Foster. "I’m still suffering some of the symptoms, and it’s been like three weeks. It makes me anxious to be around here. It makes me anxious to have a bunch of kids out here, completely unable to defend themselves. And there’s people shooting up, doing meth, running around beating on each other."
Foster says he moved to LA to pursue a career as a pop singer. He can often be seen driving for Beach Buggy, wearing a cowboy hat, while singing his music to riders.
While he doesn’t look for fights, Foster told FOX 11 he’ll never hesitate to break up a brawl.
"Prepare yourself for the worst," sad Foster. "But, I think use of force is oftentimes unnecessary. It should be restrained until it is necessary."