Waitress Claims Dine & Dashers Pulled Her Into Lake of the Ozarks After Confronting Them

News By TooFab Staff |
KY3 News

Surveillance footage shows the woman chase down the group after they allegedly stiffed her on the bill -- before she was left "crying and bawling in the water" following the confrontation.

Authorities in Missouri are investigating after a waitress was allegedly pulled into the water after confronting a group of customers who dined and dashed.

It all went down on Friday, June 28th at the Fish & CO Restaurant in Camdenton on the Lake of the Ozarks. According to the Camden County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to a call for an assault and, following an investigation, "discovered a restaurant employee was allegedly pulled into the lake by a group of restaurant patrons who left the dining area without paying their bar tab."

"When the server approached the group, who were boarding a boat, she grabbed a boat rail to prevent the boat from leaving," said the Sheriff. "According to the server an unidentified male on the boat then grabbed her arm and pulled her into the lake as the boat was backing away from the slip."

The waitress, who has been identified as Liahna Bertels, got out of the lake by using the swim deck of a nearby boat. She was uninjured, though her earbuds were reportedly damaged.

Authorities are currently looking for the group, saying they were on a red-decked pontoon boat and believed to be "from out of state."

Speaking with KY3 about the incident, Bertels said she refused to serve alcohol to a young woman in the group who didn't have her ID on her. In a Facebook post, she said the table "proceeded to throw a fit" about not serving her, before ordering food. Admitting she didn't let them know there would be an hour and a half wait for food, she said they then got "very angry" about the delay and decided to leave right when their order was ready. When she came back with to-go boxes, they had walked out.

The restaurant says the bill was around $150.

Surveillance footage showed the group walking down the dock to their boat, appearing to be in good spirits. Shortly later, Bertels follows, the boat drives off and she returns, drenched.

"Whenever I hit the water they decided to start laughing and cheering which really hurt,” Bertels said. "And I was just like crying and bawling in the water and I didn't know what to do."

She also told Fox 49 she has no plans to get back in the lake anytime soon, calling it "traumatizing."

Anyone with information about the Identities of anyone in the group is urged to contact the Camden County Sheriff's Office.