David Chang

Caught on Cam: Man Knocked Unconscious Outside Club

Philadelphia Police say they are investigating a second incident outside a Center City nightclub after a video was released showing a man being knocked unconscious outside the club.

The first incident, which was recorded and posted on YouTube but later removed, took place outside the Coda nightclub on 1712 Walnut Street around 1:30 a.m. Friday, according to a spokesperson for the club.

In the video, the victim approaches a larger man and asks him a question though it's unclear what exactly he says. He then asks the larger man, "Now if you hit me and you swing and you miss can I still go inside?"

The larger man then shakes his head. As the victim continues talking the larger man suddenly swings and punches him in the face. The victim falls down on the sidewalk and lies unconscious. The video then ends.

"I was at the club," a witness said. "This guy who was previously kicked out kept asking the bouncer to punch him in the face to let him back in the club and eventually the bouncer obliged and knocked him out."

The witness said the victim sat up less than a minute later and was talking to other people outside the club.

"The guy was fine," the witness said. "He did have a gash in his head so he went to the hospital in an ambulance. The bouncer walked away and got in a car that rolled up and that was that."

Dan Gross, a spokesperson for Coda, told NBC10 the man who punched the victim did not work for the club.

"We are disgusted by the assault that took place early Friday morning outside our establishment," said Gross. "Coda has no tolerance for violence such as this and we pride ourselves on maintaining a safe and positive space where people can enjoy live entertainment."

Gross told NBC10 Coda's staff called police to report the incident and will continue to cooperate fully with authorities.

A spokesperson told NBC10 the man who punched the victim worked for Mainline Security but was not on duty the night of the incident. He also said the man was fired after the video was released.

Philadelphia Police told NBC10 they are investigating a separate incident that occurred outside Coda over the weekend. A 25-year-old man reported to police he was outside the club at 3:37 a.m. Sunday when he was assaulted by a bouncer. The man did not report any injuries however. Police initially believed the victim in Sunday's incident was the same man who was knocked unconscious in the video. They later found out there were two separate incidents and the man who was knocked out in the video never filed a police report.

In regards to Sunday's incident, a spokesperson for Coda told NBC10 a man started a fight with another person inside the club and was later removed by security.

No arrests have been made in either incident.

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