COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE — A Gresham man tried to torch a restaurant after workers there refused to serve him, prosecutors said.
Harry McNeal, 46, was charged with attempted arson and trespassing Sunday after prosecutors said he tried to burn down the Shark's Fish & Chicken at 855 W. 87th St.
McNeal made a scene Friday at the restaurant when he picked up an order ticket off the floor and demanded food, prosecutors said. When employees refused, McNeal started banging on the window and yelling.
Employees then agreed to give McNeal something to eat, prosecutors said.
When he returned the following day and again started making demands, the workers called police and had him arrested.
McNeal was arrested on charges of criminal trespass and released from jail, prosecutors said. On Monday, McNeal returned to the restaurant, apparently bent on revenge.
He walked into Shark's and dumped a 5-gallon bucket full of gasoline all over the floor, prosecutors said.
As McNeal tried to light a cigarette, a 26-year-old Shark's employee rushed toward him and shoved him out of the restaurant, prosecutors said.
After his arrest, McNeal pledged to return to Shark's Fish & Chicken and finish the job, prosecutors said. He also said he would be back to "kill everybody and put them in body bags," according to a police report.
McNeal, of the 8600 block of South Emerald Avenue, was ordered held in lieu of $1 million bail Wednesday by a Cook County judge.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here:
