Man wielding machete injures 4 in restaurant attack
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COLUMBUS, Ohio — Gerald and Debbie Russell are in the hospital, with bandaged hands, under Valentine’s Day-themed blankets, recalling that horrific night. The two had just finished up dinner, when they say a man with a machete came in.
“He walked directly at me, raised the machete up and tried to hit me from above, directly on top of my head,” Russell told ABC6 On Your Side.
The Russell’s were in the first booth. Gerald says he shoved the man away from him. His wife tried to help. “I started screaming and cursing which brought the attention away from Gerry a little bit, which got him a chance to push the guy out of the way,” Russell said.
Police identified the attacker as Mohamed Barry. In the crowd of 20 or so, the two somehow got separated. They say the man headed to the back of the restaurant targeting people there. “I know people were running and he started beating someone in the very back booth and he was beating them with everything he had,” Russell said.
The couple reunited outside and ran to Carpet One, a couple doors down, for help. Police shot and killed Barry on Stelzer Road. The Russell’s both have cuts on their hands. Debbie almost lost a finger.
The high school sweethearts, married for 25 years, say while they have a couple months of rehab, they’re thankful to be alive.