Police, motorcycle club brawl at South Side bar

PITTSBURGH — Undercover Pittsburgh police officers and armed members of the Pagans motorcycle club clashed at a South Side bar early Friday morning.

A Channel 11 viewer sent us a video of the brawl inside Kopy’s Bar on 12th Street.

According to court documents, the officers were at the bar to investigate a drug complaint when the fight broke out.

Investigators arrested four people: Frank Deluca, 36, Michael Zokaites, 38, Erik Hertzrater, 28, and Bruce Thomas, 61.  Each are facing several charges, including aggravated assault and riot.

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The criminal complaint says things were at first cordial and quickly escalated when someone identified the undercover officers inside the bar.

Deluca allegedly started screaming and swearing at a detective, telling him to leave the bar.

Deluca is accused of pushing the detective him which started a full-on fistfight with members of the motorcycle club jumping in.

It got so heated that police had to call in backup and were forced to use pepper spray to get the suspects under control.

Police said they recovered guns and knives after the fight.

The Citizen Police Review Board is asking for witnesses and anyone with videos of the fight to come forward.

Cox Media Group