Police: 9 arrested after assaulting Bloomington IHOP employee who confronted them about unpaid bill

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - Bloomington Police are investigating after they say an IHOP employee was assaulted by a group of people after he confronted them for leaving without paying their bill early Thursday morning.

Police first responded at 5:45 a.m. on a report of an assault. They found the IHOP employee confronted the group of nine who left without paying. At one point, the employee ended up inside the vehicle as the suspects left the parking lot and drove across Killebrew Drive onto Mall of America property.

The employee, a 37-year-old Bloomington man, reported he had been assaulted by several of the people after he was forced into their car. He was hospitalized with minor injuries.

Seven of the people were found at the vehicle and arrested. Two more were located several blocks away after fleeing the car before police arrived.

Five juveniles and a 19-year-old Mendota Heights woman were booked and released pending charges. Another two juveniles from Minneapolis were held on probable cause robbery charges and a 21-year-old San Diego man was held on aiding and abetting robbery charges.