READ MORE | Atlanta police arrest suspect in ‘kill gays’ threat
Authorities are investigating a man who threatened to kill LGBT people, made anti-gay comments and left threatening notes in at least two East Atlanta restaurants on Saturday.
The incidents came a week after the massacre in the gay Orlando club Pulse in which a gunman killed 49 people. And the treats happened just days after an Atlanta man impersonated another man and threatened to make two Atlanta gay bars “the next Orlando” and a Marietta man was fired by Walmart for calling the tragedy “someone doing community service.”
On Saturday, a man carrying a backpack and duffel bag stopped at Flatiron Bar and Midway Pub and left a note that his “meal was interrupted by the filth you let in your establishment.” He ended the note with, “I will kill all your friends.”
Witnesses said the man also used anti-gay slurs and threatened people. Via WSB:
Brent Mitchell said he ran into the man police are investigating for allegedly making threat against gay couples, before hundreds of people started posting their concerns on Facebook.
Mitchell said he was singing for a couple on Flat Shoals Road this week in East Atlanta Village when the man started calling him names.
“It was like 'f—— should just be in hell. We are in hell, but f—–, ya'll need to burn.' It was like okay really?” Mitchell said.
The man also made anti-gay comments to a waiter at Midway. He wrote a note on his receipt, complaining about the “shitty environment” because of all the “faggots.” He also complained to a waiter, according to WSB.
Saturday evening, a manager at Midway restaurant and bar told Channel 2 Action News the same man made comments about gay couples to his waiter.
That manager asked the man to leave, but not before the man wrote a note.
It reads “God bless. I wanted to leave a better tip, but my meal was interrupted by the filth you let in your establishment. I will kill your friends.”
Atlanta police told WSB that they are investigating the threats and that the incident has been turned over to its Homeland Security Unit.
We've reached out to Atlanta police and will update the story if we hear back.
UPDATE | WSB has removed the story from its website and told Decaturish that “some elemnts of the story needed further investigation.”
[images via Randy Lillquist]