A McLennan County deputy stands guard near a group of bikers in the parking lot of a Twin Peaks restaurant Sunday, May 17, 2015, in Waco, Texas. Waco Police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton told KWTX-TV there were "multiple victims" after gunfire erupted between rival biker gangs at the restaurant. (Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald via AP) ORG XMIT: TXWAC102(Photo: Rod Aydelotte, AP)
Nine motorcycle gang members were killed Sunday when a gunfight broke out between three rival gangs at a restaurant in Waco, Texas, police said.
Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton confirmed "multiple fatalities" in the shootout at Twin Peaks Restaurant shortly after noon. Eighteen people were transferred to local hospitals with gunshot and stab wounds, KCEN-TV reported.
Remarkably, Swanton said, all of the dead or injured were "members of criminal biker gangs." Bystanders at the shopping center and a nearby restaurant — as well as police present when the shootout spilled into the parking lot — were "all unscathed," he said.
One officer at the scene was hospitalized due to a "heat-related issue," not an injury, he said.
"Fortunately, none of our officers, nor any of our innocent civilians, were injured in this melee here today," he said.
Swanton said police expected to recover about 100 weapons from the crime scene — one of the worst he'd ever encountered.
The initial fight, he said, began in the Twin Peaks restroom. He told KWTX-TV that the fight quickly escalated from fists and feet to chains, clubs and knives, then to gunfire.
Swanton said police knew there could be trouble at the restaurant, as they'd learned that a gang "recruitment" event was taking place at Twin Peaks. He said police tried to keep the gathering from happening, but that restaurant management refused to cooperate.
"What happened here today could have been avoided if we'd had management at a local establishment listen to their police department and assist us," he said. "They failed to do that and this is the event, what happened."
He said police in the parking lot were fired upon and returned fire. Law enforcement may well have inflicted some of the injuries or deaths, he said, but he added that until the investigation is complete he couldn't be sure. "Obviously, we've got a long way to go on this crime scene behind us."
On its Facebook page earlier in the afternoon, the Waco Police Department advised residents to "avoid the Central Texas Market Place as the area is NOT safe. Officers are continuing to arrest individuals coming to the scene with weapons." It added, "This is not the time to sight see as we are dealing with very dangerous individuals."
A witness at the nearby Don Carlos Mexican Restaurant told KWTX he and his family walked into the parking lot between the restaurants when they heard several gunshots and saw wounded being taken from the fight scene. "We crouched down in front of our pick-up truck because that was the only cover we had," the man, who asked not to be identified, said.
EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - Law enforcement officers investigate a shooting in the parking lot of the Twin Peaks Restaurant Sunday, May 17, 2015, in Waco, Texas. Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton told KWTX-TV there were ìmultiple victimsî after gunfire erupted between rival biker gangs at the restaurant. (Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune Herald via AP) ORG XMIT: TXWAC101 (Photo: Rod Aydelotte, AP)
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