Mobile Subway shooting after late-night dispute, employee charged with first-degree assault

Markeas Bernard, 31, was arrested at the scene after a dispute inside the Subway at 3067 Dauphin Street in Mobile shortly before 10 p.m. on Feb. 26, Mobile police said. Bernard was charged with first-degree assault and remained in custody with bond set at $30,000, according to jail records.

When officers arrived, they found a man with "multiple, severe gunshot wounds," the Mobile Police Department said in a news release. The injured customer was rushed to a hospital, underwent emergency surgery and has since been stabilized, MPD Public Information Officer Roderick Miles told reporters. One other customer inside the restaurant was not injured.

Investigators described a rapid escalation inside the store: police said a customer became upset at an employee and, at one point, "picked up a chair and other objects and began throwing them at Bernard." WALA/Gray Local Media reporting described bags of chips, a rack lying on the floor and an upside-down chair at the scene after the fight. A store manager told News 5 that Bernard was working alone when the argument began.

Authorities said the confrontation moved toward the front door of the restaurant and that is when the worker opened fire. Officers are continuing to review surveillance footage from inside the Subway to determine exactly what happened, police said. An unverified account provided to FOX10 News by a "person with knowledge" claimed the customer jumped over the counter; MPD did not confirm that detail.

Bernard remained at the Subway after the shooting and was taken into custody without incident, police and jail records show. Fox10tv and other affiliates reported Bernard’s court appearance is scheduled for March 3, with WALA noting he was to be in court the Tuesday following the March 2 reporting.

MPD Public Information Officer Roderick Miles placed the shooting in the context of failed de-escalation, saying, "All of this stemmed because of the lack of conflict resolution on an employee in the middle of a verbal altercation." On the use of a firearm, Miles said, "I don't think this situation called for a handgun to be retrieved. And for a person to be laying up in a hospital bed." He added that the outcome might have been avoided, "Had the victim walked away or had the subject removed himself from the situation."

Police continue to examine footage and evidence from the Subway to clarify the sequence of events and whether additional charges will be filed. The victim's name has not been released publicly, and authorities have not provided further details about the weapon or whether Bernard had legal authorization to possess it.