Man charged after yelling ICE threats, throwing liquid at kids outside Chicago dance studio

Man facing charges after throwing liquid at teen dancers in Avondale

 We have an update on the confrontation between a man, woman, and a group of teen dancers in Avondale. There are charges against one of the adults. Joanie Lum has the latest.

CHICAGO - A man has been charged with multiple counts of battery after a confrontation outside a Chicago dance studio went viral with a couple shouting at children and throwing liquid at them and allegedly making racist comments.

What we know:

According to police, Robert Villanueva, 50, has been charged with five misdemeanor counts of battery.

Ald. Felix Cardona Jr. (31st) said the man seen in a widely circulated video of the incident was arrested and charged with five counts of simple battery. 

The encounter happened around 10 p.m. Friday night outside Ballet Folklorico de Chicago in Avondale, where children and parents were leaving the studio after classes.

According to police, Villanueva threw several cups of an unknown liquid toward the group, hitting some of the children. Several children said the man and a woman shouted at them about noise and made racially charged remarks during the confrontation.

Multiple parents filed police reports.

What they're saying:

Damian Guerrero, 13, felt the liquid hit his back. 

"The neighbor upstairs came out, started yelling at everyone, saying, ‘Oh you don’t belong here, hope ICE comes to get you.’ He was yelling racial slurs to us," Guerrero said.

Quetzali Estrada, 14, said, "He was cursing us out, saying we were lucky ICE wasn’t here. It was just a bit, it was a lot. He was yelling it, and it was very terrifying."

Viral confrontation: couple vs. teens

A confrontation between a Chicago couple and a group of teens, is going viral.  Video shows a man throwing water onto the kids as they were leaving a dance studio Friday night.

Ninth grader Lila Salabert said the incident was frightening. "I was definitely afraid a little bit, it wasn’t the first time, and it escalated more than it had to."

Dancer and parent, Violeta Ochoa Salabert, said,"It was just an unfortunate incident. And just the fact they targeted this attack toward kids, when parents aren’t present. It’s just that it’s a terrible situation. The fact that they brought, had to bring in a racial matter. It felt like just a racially targeted attack."

The backstory:

Ballet Folklorico provides dance classes to celebrate Mexican heritage. They partner with Chicago Public Schools to offer after-school cultural programs.

The studio has been open since May.

In 2017, Villanueva was charged with criminal trespassing, according to police.

ROBERT A VILLANUEVA (2017) (Chicago Police)

What's next:

On Wednesday, the teen dancers were wearing new shirts that read: "Think Before You Hate."

The shirts are gifts from Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office, after officials learned what happened outside the dance studio Friday night.

Students and parents are stepping carefully around the building these days, concerned about future confrontations.

They had discussions with trusted adults about race relations and have received positive community support.

Violeta Ochoa Salabert said, "We’re just here doing a positive thing. We’re here dancing. We’re trying to promote our culture, our identity."

What we don't know:

The man who was charged has not yet been identified by Chicago police.