Wedding receptions can go a little awry if you’re not careful. Down the years they’ve been known to be derailed by drunk bridesmaids, dodgy DJs, shocking speeches and poorly thought-out seating plans. This Wisconsin ceremony, however, takes the (wedding) cake.
A wedding held recently in Milwaukee reportedly descended into utter chaos and gunfire after a row that prosecutors say began because a groomsman started sloppily eating meatballs with his hands.
Police are now searching for 41-year-old Thomas Redrick Williams, who is accused of shooting and injuring two people during an altercation at the reception before fleeing the scene.
He is wanted on suspicion of reckless injury with use of a dangerous weapon, possession of a firearm by a felon and bail jumping, Daily Mail reports.
The incident happened on June 20 at the Aria Business Center in Milwaukee, where officers arrived to find a man and a woman with gunshot wounds.
According to a criminal complaint that was lodged on that evening, the confrontation started in the kitchen when the bride’s cousin allegedly spotted Williams helping himself to meatballs with his hands and told him he should use a plate and cutlery instead.
Using your hands to eat meatballs isn’t generally considered a criminal offence but what prosecutors allege happened next certainly is.
Police say the exchange quickly escalated, with the woman telling officers that Williams punched her after she challenged him.
Her brother-in-law stepped in as the argument became physical.
Prosecutors say that Williams then pulled out a gun and opened fire. The woman was shot in the arm and leg, while the man was hit in the back of the neck. Both survived after being taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
The bride allegedly witnessed the shooting before following Williams outside as he tried to leave, confronting him beside his car and grabbing his key fob in an attempt to stop him driving away.
It apparently worked, at least partly, as Williams allegedly abandoned the car and fled the scene on foot instead.
Police searched the vehicle, which is registered to Williams’ wife. Investigators say that they found a Taurus 9mm handgun.
His wife later told officers that the pair had attended the wedding together and that Williams dropped her at home before returning with her car.
Authorities say Williams was already out on bond in a separate case when the shooting happened and a warrant has since been issued for his arrest. As of Monday, jail records showed that he had not been taken into custody.
Footage broadcast by local station 12 News showed the visibly distressed bride outside the venue after the shooting, while neighbours were left stunned that a wedding celebration had ended in such a shocking demonstration of violence.
‘For a wedding to be shot up like that is ridiculous,’ local resident Robert told local TV news station WISN 12 News. ‘A wedding day is supposed to be something that two people have to care and love each other, and for someone to disrupt that is disrupting a family.’