Attacks on Employees Ramp Up Before Holidays

Pittsburgh, PA (WorkersCompensation.com) – Attacks on employees at work continue as the year draws to a close, with a number of incidents across the country. 

In Pittsburgh, a fast food worker is recovering after being attacked by a customer over an argument about the employee’s service dog.

Police officers in Pittsburgh said the Jimmy John’s employee was working at a downtown store on Dec. 16, when they were called to the store. When they arrived, they found the employee severely beaten.

Police took two men into custody, Tyree Blue-Murphy and Damon Robinson. Both of the men were apprehended a few blocks from the store with blood on their clothes. Murphy told police that he and the victim got into an argument when he tried to pet the employee’s service dog. He said the argument became physical with the victim grabbed his hair. Robinson said he tried to break up the fight but started hitting the victim after he was hit, police said.

Video of the incident showed the two men stomping, punching and kicking the victim, as well as hitting him with a bicycle tire.

The employee was taken to a hospital in critical condition suffering from serious head trauma and a brain bleed. He is expected to survive.

Murphy and Robinson face aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy charges, police said.

In Atlanta, police have charged a woman with assault and kidnapping after she allegedly attacked a Gwinnett County Rooms To Go employee.

Officials with the Gwinnett County Police Department said they were called to the store on Dec. 14 for a disruptive customer who was allegedly throwing items around the store and attacking an employee with a lanyard.

The victim gave the police the suspect’s license plate number and officers were able to track the vehicle to a nearby Horizon Inn and Suites.

When approached by the police, the 32-year-old Deanna Sinai Mills attempted to flee in her car, hitting a law enforcement vehicle and striking an officer instead. Mils was taken into custody and booked into the Gwinnett County Jail. She was charged with two counts of kidnapping, two counts of aggravated assault, battery, criminal property damage, willful obstruction, interference with government property and disorderly conduct.

In Grand Junction, Col., a man is behind bars after attacking a television station employee following a confrontation about his nationality.

Police said Patrick Egan, 39, is facing charges of bias-related crimes, second degree assault and harassment after attacking a KKCO news employee outside of the station.

Officials said the victim was driving when Egan began following him. At one point, Egan rolled down his window and began shouting at the employee, allegedly saying, “Are you even a U.S. citizen?” This is Trump’s America now! I’m a Marine and I took an oath to protect this country from people like you!”

The victim then called the manager of the station who told him to return to the station. When he arrived, Egan confronted him again asking for identification. When the victim ran toward the door, Egan tackled him and began to choke him before other KKCO employees stepped in to help their co-worker and hold Egan until police arrived.

The employee was evaluated on site, officials said.

Egan was driving a Sunshine Rides car at the time.

Kelly Millan, the general manager of Sunshine Rides said in a statement, “This type of behavior has no place in our society and I strongly condemn it. I deeply regret the harm and disruption this has caused the victim, his family and co-workers. Sunshine Rides has suspended Egan pending a full investigation, will assist law enforcement and will use this incident to re-emphasize our core values and expectations with our entire team.”

In Lenexa, Kan., a teenager is recovering after a customer attacked them, police said.

According to Lenexa Police officials, two people walked into a store around 7:45 p.m. on Dec. 14. Witnesses said the two people began acting suspiciously, then one of them unexpectedly punched a 15-year-old employee in the back of the head unprovoked. Police said security video showed one of the customers running up behind the employee, then punching them in the head and pushing them to the ground.

Officials said the employee did not suffer any serious injuries from the attack.

In Oakland, Cal., one man was injured and another was killed when a customer turned violent.

The Oakland Police Department said it was called to the Best Dim Sum and Pastry Restaurant around 4:30 on Dec. 12 for a man vandalizing cars. One of the restaurant’s employees and the husband of the restaurant’s owner ran into the parking lot to confront the man, officials said. At some point, the owner’s husband had a heart attack, and the suspect hit the employee with what officers described as a blunt object.

Surveillance video from a store across the street from the restaurant showed the suspect dropping an object before entering the store. The employee can be seen moments later in the video approaching the store and touching his head, apparently checking for blood.

Residents of the area said the man is known to the neighborhood and is unhoused. Other business owners in the area told media the crime in the neighborhood is out of control. One store owner said her shop’s windows have been broken more than a dozen times and a car has driven through the front of it. Employees in the area said they were afraid to come to work because of the suspect and the rising crime rate.

And in West Valley, Utah, police are working to find the suspect in an attack on a convenience store employee on Dec. 15.

Felicia Turner, an employee at Family Dollar in West Valley, said it was a normal Sunday until a man entered the store and bought candy.

"He came up to my register, he bought some candy with an EBT card, he wanted to get cash back, I told him you couldn't get cash back on EBT, he insisted that he wanted to try again," said Turner.

Turner said when she told the man she couldn’t give him cash back off of the card, he became irate and started to leave with a soda in his hand.

"That's when he threw that soda bottle directly at me and hit my chest," said Turner. "Next thing I know he's flying through my door there and kicking me punching me, and luckily there were some other customers there, they helped, you know, get him to leave the store."

Turner said an X-ray the next day found that the bottle had fractured her sternum, and that she suffered from bumps and bruises after being hit.

Police said the incident is under investigation.

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