“I’m not unhinged”: McDonald’s ax-wielding man Michael Palacios speaks out about the use of a weapon

Michael Palacios, the ax-wielding man who went on a rage-fueled rampage at a Lower East Side McDonald’s on September 16, defended his actions and explained to the New York Post the reason behind carrying an ax in his backpack.

In an interview with The Post on Monday, September 19, Michael Palacios, the 31-year-old Manhattan bike messenger, said that he was not a deranged man and did what anyone would do when confronted with a similar situation.

“I’m not unhinged.”

Palacios was charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and possession-of-weapons.

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Michael Palacios sets the record straight about the Friday morning incident

According to earlier reports, Michael Palacios flipped out and pulled an ax out in the McDonald's outlet after an unidentified woman reportedly rejected his advances. Cellphone video captured the incident where Palacios grabbed an ax out of his backpack, terrorized customers and destroyed property at the fast-food restaurant in Delancey.

Michael Palacios has now spoken out in his defense and said he was only trying to intimidate McDonald’s patrons who punched him during an altercation on Friday. Palacios also expounded on why he prefers his “tomahawk” to a gun. In an interview with The Post, he said:

“Think about it. If you only think that the thing you can protect yourself with is a gun, we’re all going to go to f*****g jail. With a hatchet, I have my options — throw it or just smash a f*****g table. With a gun. all you do is shoot.”

After the incident, witnesses alleged that Palacios appeared to be agitated after the woman spurned his overtures. But Palacios refuted the earlier claim and said he was provoked by an argument with a customer after the restaurant security guard refused to let him in the bathroom.

Palacios told the Post that he was cornered by three patrons who allegedly backed him up and began striking him repeatedly. An Uber Eats driver present during the incident said that Palacios remained calm while being pummeled by customers at the fast-food joint.

Palacios told The Post:

“I’m like, ‘Yo, bro, c’mon. Open the bathroom. And then I hear, ‘You, you don’t have to be mean about it.’ I’m like, ‘Shut the f**k up.’ I didn’t even look back. I just said it, and then it all became, ‘Oh, I’ll slap you.’ I’m like, ‘Where are you gonna slap me?’ And that’s when I came at the guy with the black tank top.”

He further added:

“And eventually I just got tired of three dudes backing me up, and I just slapped one of them. It had nothing to do with attacking women. The woman had no issues. I had no issues with the woman.”

Palacios then picked out the ax from his backpack and slammed two tables and a plate-glass partition at the restaurant. Palacios stated that he only carries the weapon for protection after he was allegedly attacked in Chicago, the Post reported.

“I wanted to intimidate them. Also, I wanted to show them that the hatchet was real. It’s not a toy.”

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Michael Palacios lost a job at a local brewery earlier in the day of the violent incident

Michael Palacios told The Post there were extenuating circumstances involved that led to him losing his composure during the violent rampage at the fast-food restaurant. Earlier in the day of the incident, Palacios was left disgruntled after losing a job at the local brewery where he was purportedly fired for tardiness.

Palacios fled the restaurant after the Friday morning incident but was arrested by cops nearby on Ludlow Street. He was then charged without bail under the state’s lenient criminal justice reforms.