"I've come onto this app and seen myself get assaulted."
A male customer was caught on camera hitting a Nando’s waitress with a plate while she tried to serve him.
Although the footage has gone viral, the “unprovoked” assault took place in March at a Nando’s branch in Stratford, London.
The footage showed the waitress approaching a table where a bearded man, wearing a black beanie and dark hoodie, was sitting with a woman and young child.
But as the server places the food on his table, the man slaps her across the face with a dinner plate.
The force of the blow sends the waitress backwards, leaving her holding her face.
Horrified diners turned around to see what happened.
The woman is also shocked at the man’s actions.
The waitress then leaves the scene as her attacker gets up and walks away with the woman and child.
It is not known what triggered the sudden attack but a screenshot showed a clearer image of the perpetrator.
A woman who claimed to have been the waitress shared the clip on X.
She wrote: “No way I’ve come onto this app and seen myself get assaulted.”
The incident was reported to the police but the alleged victim was critical of the response.
She revealed: “The police were present at the time, I reported it to them and they let him go without taking his details or checking the CCTV.
“I filed a complaint against the officers and their supervisor got back to me and essentially said ‘they’re humans and made a mistake’.”
The Met Police said it was “aware” of the footage and was investigating why the incident was “not progressed promptly” by officers.
A spokesperson said: “A report of assault was made to police at the time of the incident, however, it appears this was not progressed promptly by officers.
“We are working to establish why this happened and accept this is not the level of service Londoners should rightfully expect from the Met.
“We have since made contact with the victim and a statement has been taken – we will endeavour to keep her updated with the progress of this investigation.
‘There has been no arrest and enquiries are ongoing to locate the man involved.
“Anyone who can provide information about this incident should call 101 ref CAD 1872/21 Aug.”
Man slaps a Nando’s employee with a plate whilst she served them food pic.twitter.com/6EvRdzly6d
— FighterPunch (@Fightter_Punch) August 22, 2024
Netizens condemned the attack, calling the man’s actions “disgusting”, “criminal” and “savage”.
One wrote:
“This man is unhinged! Seriously, why do that? Is he sick? What a savage.”
Another commented: “Assaulting someone over food?
“That’s a one-way ticket to jail. Seems like even working at a restaurant doesn’t guarantee safety anymore. Pathetic.”
A Nando’s spokesperson said in a statement:
“This was a shocking and unprovoked attack earlier this year. We reported it to the police immediately and have supported our colleague since.
“We will not tolerate this kind of behaviour, the safety of our colleagues and customers is our priority.”
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