Two Men Charged in Violent Late-Night Attack on Bartender in Munster
Munster-Two men have been charged in Lake County after police say a bartender at True BBQ in Munster was severely beaten and choked unconscious during a late-night altercation caught on video.
Rayshaun L. Cooper and Angel Hernandez Perez were each charged following the incident, which occurred around 10:52 p.m. on November 4, 2025, inside the restaurant located at 8940 Calumet Avenue.
According to court documents, Munster police responded to a report of a person in danger and found a bartender with severe injuries, including bruising, facial lacerations, swelling, and marks around the neck. The bartender told officers he had been attacked by a Black male wearing all black clothing and a Hispanic male wearing a Carhartt hoodie with a tattoo of a cross behind his ear, who fled in a white Kia Telluride parked behind the nearby Hampton Inn.
Police located the SUV and later detained a man matching the second suspect’s description — identified through an Indiana driver’s license as Angel Hernandez Perez — after he tried to walk away from officers near 9200 Calumet Avenue. Officers said Perez resisted briefly before being taken into custody.
Later that night, another man, identified as Rayshaun Cooper, arrived at the Munster Police Department asking about his vehicle, which had been towed from the restaurant. Cooper admitted he had been involved in a fight with the bartender but claimed the confrontation began after the bartender allegedly became hostile when he and friends challenged him to make difficult drinks. Cooper stated that when the bartender got in his face and called him a derogatory term, he pushed him, and a fight ensued.
Police reviewed the restaurant’s surveillance video, which reportedly showed both Cooper and Perez attacking the bartender after being told the bar was closed. According to detectives, the footage showed Cooper shoving the bartender, then striking him repeatedly in the face and head while Perez came up from behind and placed the bartender in a choke hold. The bartender appeared to lose consciousness at one point as Cooper continued punching him roughly 25 times.
Video reportedly showed the struggle continuing as Perez released the bartender, who appeared limp, and then tried to pull Cooper off him. In a second clip, as the bartender stood using his phone, Cooper returned and punched him about ten more times before Perez again intervened and the two left the building. Officers noted that the bartender was not seen throwing any punches during either altercation.
When investigators later interviewed the bartender while he was hospitalized, he said he feared for his life during the attack and recalled shouting, You’re going to kill me,as Perez choked him. He said he believed he briefly lost consciousness during the incident and had no memory of parts of the attack captured on camera.
Charges filed November 6, 2025:
Rayshaun L. Cooper :
• Criminal Confinement Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury — Level 3 Felony
• Battery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury — Level 5 Felony
• Strangulation — Level 6 Felony
Angel Hernandez Perez :
• Criminal Confinement Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury — Level 3 Felony
• Battery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury — Level 5 Felony
• Strangulation — Level 6 Felony
• Resisting Law Enforcement — Class A Misdemeanor
Both suspects are lodged in the Lake County Jail.
