By Drew Teague

Police are beginning to put the pieces together as to who caused the dangerous fight at Tolly Ho early Sunday morning.

Lexington Police spokeswoman Sherelle Roberts said the group believed to be involved came to Lexington on a charter bus and had members of a fraternity from Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago in Lexington for UK’s homecoming game against Georgia.

Roberts said Lexington Police believe the incident at Tolly Ho was one of three altercations around Lexington caused by the same group.

“The disorder at the Tolly Ho restaurant is believed to be connected to a previous altercation at 401 W. Main St., which is The Loft nightclub,” Roberts said. “[Those two] may be connected to a later altercation at the Waffle House.”

The fight began at the front door and made its way into the main dining area, then back outside.

The fight caused the normally 24-hour restaurant to shut down for several hours, according to Tolly Ho’s website.

Tolly Ho management declined comment.

The incident occurred around 3:30 a.m. Sunday, hospitalizing five people. Police from all three sectors of Lexington responded, Roberts said.

UK Police Chief Joe Monroe said UK Police was not the one to receive the initial call.

“We were not the responding agency, that was the Lexington police,” Monroe said. “We only assisted them after they called for additional officers.”

Because of the magnitude of the fight at Tolly Ho, police from all over Lexington responded to make sure enough man power was there to calm the situation before it got worse, Roberts said.

“In most cases, only officers assigned to that sector will go to a call, but this was a case that involved several hundred individuals,” Roberts said.

Not all the individuals present at Tolly Ho during the altercation took part in it, but some became part of the situation just by their presence, Roberts said.

Roberts said she was not sure if police officers used force, but said at this point she saw no indication that they did.

“To my knowledge I have not seen any use of force reports, but that does not mean that was the case,” Roberts said. “What we consider to be use of force is like using a taser, having to use a weapon or having to use some other form of less lethal weaponry. There were people that had to be held, restrained or separated.”

Once the fight began, people began trying to force their way out the doors or get a better view of the fight. Several employees jumped into the fight attempting to break it up, according to Tolly Ho’s website.

Of the employees who intervened, one suffered broken ribs, while the other received staples in his head, Lt. Chris Van Brackel said. Two people have been charged with disorderly conduct.