Bar owner talks about teen arrests

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Excise police busted 80 teenagers partying at the Early Bird Pancake House Sunday , also known as the Early Bird Bar and Grill. Police say some were as young as 13-years-old.

This happened on the northwest side at 8311 North Michigan Road.

“I wasn't in here, I didn't know about the 13-year-old party thing and I didn't know about the flyers,” says owner Adrian Tamayo.

Adrian Tamayo owns the Early Bird Pancake House Bar and Grill. He says he knew the space was being used for an event, but he didn't know a 13-year-old girl chose his bar for her birthday party.

“I'm going to ask them for that ID. I'm not just going to sell it to a 13-year-old kid, come on you got to be smart,” says Tamayo.

Adrian says he learned about the party the next morning when customers in his restaurant showed him a flyer advertising a 13-year-old's birthday party. The birthday invite is exactly what tipped excise police off in the first place.

“When a plain clothes undercover officer went into the bar and immediately saw untold numbers of very young appearing people essentially a bar for high school students,” explains Cpl Travis Thickstun with Indiana State Excise Police.

The latest party isn't the only one happening at the breakfast spot, there's a Facebook page advertising the bar's nightly events. Excise police say even though it does have a liquor license, the restaurant doesn't have the needed permits for a bar.

“This is far different than a 20-year-old going into a bar as a college student using a fake id and sneaking in. This is completely different than that,” says Cpl Thickstun.

The owner says, his business partner's friend is the one who organized the event, and he felt he had no choice.

“Right now I'm embarrassed because this happened,” says Tamayo. “I can't even sleep last night because I find out things that I didn't know was going on.”

Adrian Tamayo says when he bought the place a year ago it came with a liquor license. He says, if he doesn't renew it yearly and wants to turn into a bar it would cost a lot more money.

Excise police say they are recommending the restaurant have its liquor license revoked. The Alcohol and Tobacco Commission will review the case in the coming months.