Lotus Nighclub security guard Richard Bradberry sat inside the dimly lit club late Friday with his hands in his lap, recounting the events early Thursday morning.
About 5 feet, 8 inches, Bradberry sports a nickel-sized mouse under his left eye after he and members of the Lotus Nightclub security staff were involved in a brawl with eight to 10 individuals, including, he said, three UNM football players.
“Every time we grabbed one, two of them would be on top of us,”
Bradberry said. “It was a mob. It was very out of control. … We were fighting for our own survival.”
So much so that it spilled into the street. Parts of the brawl aren’t viewable on Lotus Nightclub’s security system, and Bradberry said the establishment is still in the process of compiling the footage to hand over to police.
All told, three UNM football players have been indefinitely suspended from all football-related activities. UNM linebacker Julion Conley, 22, was arrested after fleeing the scene on foot and charged with aggravated battery and engaging in a public affray, according to Metropolitan Court records.
Two other players, wide receiver Bryant Williams and linebacker Joe Harris, have not been charged in connection with the incident, a UNM Athletics spokesman said, but were with Conley when the scuffle started.
Bradberry took it a step further: He said not only were Harris and Williams there, they, too, were mixing it up with members of the Lotus Nightclub security staff, in what owner Brian Craig described as an “unprovoked” and “disgraceful” attack.
So far, an APD spokeswoman said, no other arrests have been made, but Bradberry said he will consider pressing charges against those involved when APD concludes its investigation into the matter.
KRQE first reported Thursday that two men tried to enter the club using Conley’s ID.
Bradberry said Friday at an impromptu news conference inside the club that Conley had two valid IDs, one from Texas and another from New Mexico. He said at about 1:30 a.m., Conley and two of his teammates were with a group of eight to 10 people, some of whom are part of an on-campus fraternity, according to the University Athletics Department.
Conley was about to gain entry to the club, but another party with his group tried to use one of his other IDs to get into the 21-and-older part of the club, where alcohol is served, Bradberry said.
Noticing the same photo, Chris Roybal, head of Lotus Nightclub’s security team, flagged the ID. He said he confiscated the ID and told Conley that he intended to hold the ID and hand it over to APD.
That’s when, Roybal said, he turned around to walk away, but someone from Conley’s group reached into his pocket to try to snag the ID. Roybal said he spun around, and Conley then tried to take the ID back.
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Out of nowhere, Roybal said, a member of Conley’s group punched him from his blindside, and he and Conley began wrestling as another person kicked him in his face while the two were engaged on the ground.
“All I saw was the bottom of his boot,” Roybal said, adding that he couldn’t say who threw the first blow.
Bradberry said the scuffle lasted about five minutes before the group scattered in all directions as police rushed to the scene. At one point, Bradberry said one of the club’s go-go dancers got hit in the head by someone with Conley’s party, though he couldn’t say for sure whether it was Conley, Williams or Harris.
“She had no chance,” Bradberry said.
Later, Conley was taken into custody and spent part of Thanksgiving behind bars, but has since bonded out of jail, according to court documents.
Charges could be in Williams and Harris’ futures if it’s determined that they were involved in the scuffle, an APD spokesperson said late Friday.
The spokeswoman said police are actively fact-gathering and reviewing the club’s surveillance footage to identify other involved members.
Roybal, who worked Friday night, had a gashed lip and abrasions on his face. He said the incident was senseless.
“I understand that they had been drinking, but this kind of behavior isn’t something that just happens,” he said. “I’ve seen a lot of people who drink and act out of character, but this was something else. I want to find the facts, the people that were involved. I would like to hear their side of the story — what could even begin to justify their actions.”
Asked if he could have done anything differently to de-escalate the situation, Roybal said he should have called fellow security faster.
Bradberry said Roybal could have given Conley his ID back, and they would have probably walked away, but it’s policy to confiscate fake or improperly used IDs.
In a room at the back of the club, Bradberry brandishes a two-inch-thick stack of fake IDs the club collected over two weeks.
With that in mind, Roybal said if he had a mulligan he would have approached the situation in the same manner: He still wouldn’t have given Conley his ID back.
“Customarily, we’ve got the numbers on our side,” Roybal said. “We keep it like that on purpose. It’s a big factor in de-escalating situations. Even with all our guys, we would have been outnumbered 2-to-1.”
This is the latest arrest for a team riddled by off-the-field controversy during head coach Mike Locksley’s tenure.
After offensive tackle Byron Bell and wide receiver Quintell Solomon were arrested at Library Bar and Grill in June 2009, Locksley enacted a policy barring his players from going downtown. In a statement, he said his players are aware of the policy.
“As a football team, we have a very clear set of rules and policies in place, and there are consequences whenever there is a violation of team rules,” he said.
Craig said he doesn’t plan to cease hosting 18-and-older events in light of Thursday’s incident. Defending his establishment, Craig said the Downtown Action Team and APD put his club “under the microscope” after Club 7 was shut down for a host of problems, including citations for serving under-aged patrons.
Even after Thursday’s incident, Craig said his club is safe, and more than anything, he said he is concerned for his security staff’s welfare.
“I’ve heard them addressed as bouncers,” Craig said. “They’re not. I don’t have bouncers here. I have security staff. And I tell them when I hire them, ‘You’re here as security personnel, and your job is to be a host. … You are not bouncers. If you want to be bouncers, go somewhere else.’”
