Wine bar bouncer arrested following alleged assault

Police have arrested Paula Iloahefaiu Alipate, a 57-year-old Redwood City man, on suspicion of assault with force likely to cause bodily injury. Police described him a member of the wine bar’s security.

Police said the arrest stems from a June 20 incident at 840 Wine Bar & Cocktail Lounge at 840 Brewster Ave.

Officers responded to a 12:15 a.m. report of a man lying unconscious on the sidewalk in front of the wine bar. Officers learned that the unconscious man had been intoxicated and was asked to leave by wine bar employees.

When he refused, police said security forcibly removed him from the business, eventually pinning him to the sidewalk until he calmed down.

The man tried to reenter the bar and became involved in another altercation with bar security and was again forced down on the sidewalk.

Police said this was when Alipate allegedly kicked the victim in his head and hit his face with a flashlight at least four times.

The victim was taken to a local hospital.

The ensuing investigation led police to arrest Alipate two days later.

Sometime later, unspecified by police, the victim died of a “medical circumstance independent of the injuries sustained during the assault,” according to a news release issued Sunday by Redwood City Police Department. “The San Mateo County Coroner’s Office conducted an autopsy and determined the victim’s injuries from the assault did not contribute to the victim’s cause of death.”

Redwood City police encourage anyone with additional information regarding the incident to contact Redwood City Police Detective Andrew Sheffield at (650) 780-5059 or the Redwood City Police Department’s tip line at (650) 780-7110.

The incident is the second reported assault at the bar this year. In March, police arrested a man for an assault incident between patrons.