News: Gay Man Beaten in Alleged Attack by Dupont Circle Shake Shack Employees

(Photo Credits: Nicholas Swatz from Pexels)

In a shocking incident at a Washington, D.C., Shake Shack store, a gay man claims he was beaten by several employees after sharing a kiss with his boyfriend while waiting for their food.

The victim, Christian Dingus, 28, was at the Dupont Circle location on Saturday night of August 17 with his partner and friends when the incident unfolded. Dingus recalled that after briefly kissing his boyfriend, a Shake Shack worker approached them, insisting that such behavior was not allowed.

“And while we were back there — kind of briefly — we began to kiss,” Dingus said in an interview with NBC News. “And at that point, a worker came out to us and said that, you know, you can’t be doing that here, can’t do that type of stuff here.”

Dingus explained that they stopped kissing as requested, but his partner – who got upset with the employee – asserted that they had done nothing wrong. Allegedly, Dingus’ partner was then escorted out of the restaurant, leading to a heated verbal exchange. When Dingus stood up for his partner, telling the staff not to speak to him that way, “I started yelling at them, saying you have no right to do this. Leave him alone.”

The confrontation escalated, leading to the attack. Multiple employees knocked him to the ground and repeatedly punched and kicked him.

“And then one of the men, pretty forcefully, like, pushed me out of the way on my shoulder,” Dingus said. “And then, you know, next thing I know, that kind of just, I think, sparked the rest of them. … They all just kind of started attacking me at that point, dragging me back through the floor and continuously punching me in my head.”

A bystander recorded the incident on video, which has since been widely shared on social media. The footage shows a man being attacked by several others, though the identities of those involved are not clearly visible.

Despite being in significant pain, Dingus initially declined medical assistance at the scene but later visited a hospital “after he experienced intense pain in his jaw, which was severely bruised but was not broken.” The diagnosis included a concussion and trauma to his jaw, along with significant swelling and bruising on the side of his face. He was treated and released the following day.

In response to the incident, Shake Shack issued a statement confirming that the employees involved have been suspended. The statement reads:

We are aware of the incident on Saturday, Aug. 17 involving team members and a guest at our Dupont Circle location and are taking it very seriously. At Shake Shack, the safety and well-being of our guests and team members are our top priorities, and we have a zero-tolerance policy for any form of violence. We are fully cooperating with local authorities in their investigation and have suspended the team members involved pending further review. We are committed to taking the appropriate actions based on the findings.

The police report categorizes the assault as a “simple assault” and a “suspected” hate crime. Although no arrests have been made yet as of press time, Dingus has expressed his desire to press charges. D.C. police spokesperson Paris Lewbel confirmed that the investigation is ongoing and that all evidence will be submitted to the United States Attorney’s Office for review, “All facts and evidence in the case will be presented to the United States Attorney’s Office for a determination on charges.”

The incident has deeply affected Dingus’ sense of safety and security, and he expressed a desire for the perpetrators to be held responsible. “You hear all the time that this stuff happens, but, you know, I started kind of believing that it didn’t, right?” Dingus said. “I’ve been … thinking of progress and how great that community is here, and then for that all to kind of be shattered, you know, kind of sucks.”

Read this story in full here and here.