A man was arrested following a large brawl at Headquarters after a Christmas party-goer allegedly struck a young woman in the face.
A man has been arrested after a young woman was allegedly struck in the face at Auckland Viaduct bar Headquarters, leading to a large brawl.
It was alleged the woman rejected a man’s invitation to dance before he punched her in the mouth.
Headquarters owner Leo Molloy said the bar was “caught out” by a Christmas party on Thursday night and offered to compensate the victim.
A man has been arrested following a large brawl at popular Auckland Viaduct bar Headquarters after a Christmas party-goer allegedly struck a young woman in the face when she rejected his advances.
And Headquarters owner Leo Molloy has offered to compensate the young victim and herfather – who stepped in to intervene – for the “unfortunate sequence of events”.
It was alleged a young woman was punched in the mouth by a man after she refused his request to dance with him, before the large altercation erupted shortly before midnight on Thursday.
“A lot of punches were thrown and [there was] a lot of shouting and screaming,” a security staffer recalled.
It was alleged a young female was punched in the mouth by a male after she refused his request to dance with him, before the large altercation erupted shortly before midnight on Thursday.
They said a group tried to fight a man outside the front main entrance of the Viaduct bar – understood to be the father of the woman who was assaulted.
A video of the brawl shared with the Herald shows two men screaming at each other and exchanging punches on the Headquarters dance floor as others nearby try to pull them apart.
“Stop,” one person can be heard demanding over the bar’s loudspeaker, to no avail.
A young woman caught in the middle of the brawl can be heard screaming, “Don’t f***ing touch my dad”.
Video shared with the Herald shows a man – understood to be the young female's father – exchanging punches with another man in the middle of Headquarters.
In a statement to the Herald, Headquarters owner and Auckland restaurateur Leo Molloy said Headquarters was “caught out” by a Christmas party last night that “didn’t abide by our standards”.
“At midnight, a member of the offending party behaved inappropriately with a young female customer, and then reacted in an appalling fashion when the young lady refused his overture.”
Molloy said as a result, the young lady’s father intervened, leading to an exchange of blows.
“We can only apologise for what occurred as it shouldn’t have happened.
“If the victim or the victim’s father could reach out to us, we’d like to show them how we feel about this and compensate them for this unfortunate sequence of events.”
Headquarters owner and Auckland restaurateur Leo Molloy says he will compensate the victim for the “unfortunate sequence of events”. Photo / Fiona Goodall
Molloy said Headquarters prides itself on providing a safe environment for all participants.
A police spokesperson confirmed a man was arrested following a disorder on Customs St West, reported to police at 12.07am.
“A 37-year-old man was taken into custody at the scene. No injuries were reported to police.”
Police said the man is scheduled to appear in the Auckland District Court on Monday, December 23 and is charged with fighting in a public place.
Headquarters made the news earlier in the year after Molloy, an Auckland hospitality identity and former mayoral contender, confronted a man accused of brandishing a revolver.
Molloy was unscathed but took aim at the people involved, believed to be linked to rival gangs, after another incident allegedly fuelled by organised crime in the Viaduct.
“I just saw the gun and thought, ‘F*** that, I’m tired of cowboys running this town, infesting the Viaduct, and it’s time we acted to bring this s*** to an end and make these lunatics accountable’,” Molloy said.
Benjamin Plummer is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. He has worked for the Herald since 2022.
