Felonious Waffle House Customer Arrested for Tossing Guns in the Trash

As a lightning rod for controversy himself, perhaps it's no surprise TV star Anthony Bourdain recently discovered the joys of Waffle House, a chain which struggles to go a month sans newsworthy conflict. According to a press release from the police department in Benton, Ark., the most recent incident occurred Monday morning at 2 a.m. when officers "arrested a convicted felon at Waffle House for allegedly putting two firearms inside a trash can."

Police say they found 29-year-old Michael Dwayne Robertson in a booth with yet another gun and two black bags containing "a glass pipe with suspected methamphetamine residue" as well as "multiple driver's licenses, credit cards, social security cards and gift cards." He faces 30 charges total, including two counts of the intriguingly euphemistic "Possession of a Firearm by Certain Persons." The investigation is ongoing.

A manager at the Benton location would neither confirm nor deny the incident, though Saline County sheriff's department records corroborate Robertson's arrest.

Like many chains these days, Waffle House has a "no firearms allowed" policy, with exceptions only for police, military, or security. Sadly, that wasn't enough to prevent the shooting death last month of a waitress who tried to enforce the company's "no smoking" policy. If only all disgruntled patrons took to slinging plates instead of bullets.