A Fayetteville man was arrested for aggravated assault early Saturday morning

after he brandished a gun during a tussle with another customer in the parking

lot of the Y-Knot sports bar, police said.

The altercation began after Daniel Evan Smith, 21, left the bar with an

outstanding tab of $45 and said he was going to get his wallet from his car,

said Peachtree City Police Chief James Murray. Some bar regulars were asked

to follow him to make sure he wasn't leaving without paying, and after

Smith started the car, one of the regulars reached inside to shut off the

engine, Murray said.

At that point, Smith got a .38-caliber handgun out of a shaving kit in the

car and pointed it at one of the men who followed him outside, Murray said.

The gun somehow got loose during the struggle as a wrestling match ensued,

police said.

Smith was charged with one felony count of aggravated assault and misdemeanor

counts of carrying a concealed weapon, pointing a pistol at another person,

reckless conduct, theft of services and public intoxication.

"I'm not so sure I wouldn't have been protecting myself," Murray

said, noting that it's unusual for a stranger to reach into a car and

grab at the ignition switch.