Brooklyn Park chiropractic clinic staff working in fear after attack by group of teens
BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. – Employees of a metro business say they're being targeted, and terrorized, by a group of teenage girls.
The staff at Optimum Chiropractic in Brooklyn Park says seven teenagers, mostly girls, entered the clinic in June and got physical when asked to leave.
They broke the office manager's arm, who says she hasn't been back to work since.
Duylin Nguyen, the clinic's owner, says another one of his employees was knocked unconscious before police arrived.
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"Officers were able to capture several of the suspects but not all of them," said Inspector Elliot Faust with Brooklyn Park Police Department. "Officers were able to piece together that there was an assault."
The teens were taken away but released. They didn't stay away.
"We were quite fearful," Nguyen said. "We don't know what to do. It never happened before."
Nguyen installed a buzzer for the front door and cameras around the building. Surveillance video from earlier this month shows officers handcuffing and releasing at least one of the teens.
Faust says officers didn't know at the time of the first incident that the employee's arm was broken, so the kids were let go with misdemeanors.
Now though, detectives are investigating it as a potential felony.
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"From the looks of it, the case is getting close to being able to be submitted for charges," Faust said.
Still, the waiting is putting a strain on everyone at the clinic.
"We're not sure what to do," Nguyen said. "It doesn't seem like the police are able to protect us. So we're scared."
Some of the staff are looking into getting restraining orders.