Wendy's worker punches drive-thru customer through car window — then steals car, hits victim with car, bites 2 cops: Police



Police said a St. Louis-area Wendy's employee physically attacked a drive-thru customer after an argument earlier this week, KPLR-TV reported — but that ain't the half of what the suspect is accused of.

In short, the worker allegedly punched the customer through his driver-side window, stole the victim's car, returned to the scene and hit the victim with the car, and bit two cops.

Then there was the whole hammer thing.

What are the details?

Police in Overland — which is about 20 minutes northwest of St. Louis — headed to the restaurant in the 8900 block of Page Avenue after a report of a fight in progress Monday, KPLR-TV reported.

The victim told officers that he got into an argument with the employee while in the drive-thru lane, the station said.

The victim said the employee — later identified as 27-year-old Leon S. Johnson — exited the restaurant and began punching him through his open car window, KMOV-TV reported.

The victim told police he grabbed a hammer from his car and began swinging it at Johnson to get him to back off, KPLR said, adding that the victim soon exited his car with the hammer — but then Johnson got in the victim’s car and drove off.

KSDK-TV reported, citing court documents, that Johnson soon returned to the restaurant and hit the customer with the car, knocking the hammer out of the customer's hand. Johnson then got out of the car, picked up the hammer, and began to hit the car's front windshield, KSDK added. The KPLR report indicates Johnson hit the victim with the hammer.

The customer suffered a "laceration on his lip and multiple contusions to his face," police told KSDK, which added that officers said Johnson admitted to taking the victim’s car and hitting him with it. Police also said Johnson bit two officers who tried to arrest him, KSDK added. Jail records indicate the arrest took place just after 9 p.m.

It's unclear what the victim and Johnson were arguing about, KSDK added.

The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Johnson with first-degree assault, first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle, third-degree assault, second-degree property damage, resisting arrest for a felony, and two counts of fourth-degree assault, KSDK said, adding that all the charges are felonies.

Johnson was jailed on a $500,000 cash-only bond, KSDK noted. He remained in jail as of Friday morning.

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68-year-old Lowe's employee fired for trying to stop shoplifters has been reinstated



The 68-year-old Lowe's employee fired for bravely trying to stop shoplifters from absconding with over $2,000 of stolen merchandise has been given her job back at the Rincon, Georgia, store where she has worked for 13 years.

This corporate about-face appears to have been the result, at least in part, of the widespread recognition of Donna Hansbrough's dedication as well as the backlash online over the store's decision to kick a battered victim to the curb over a supposed company policy violation.

TheBlaze previously reported that three suspects entered the home improvement store on June 25, loaded at least one shopping cart with loot, then took off without paying.

Police indicated the alleged shoplifting trio comprised Takyah Berry, Joseph Berry (Takyah's uncle), and Jarmar Lawton.

According to the Rincon Police Department, Hansbrough attempted to stop one of the suspects by grabbing hold of the shopping cart.

The 68-year-old later told the Effingham Herald, "I just got tired of seeing things get out the door. I just ... I lost it."

Outside the store, Hansbrough reportedly asked to see a receipt. When the suspects failed to produce one, she grabbed the cart.

Police stressed that Hansbrough "did not at any time make contact with any person."

Takyah Berry, one of the suspects, was allegedly the shoplifter helming the cart full of stolen goods.

Berry allegedly hit Hansbrough three times in the face, giving the victim a swollen black eye, said police.

Surveillance video of the incident appears to show Hansbrough take the beating but maintaining control of the cart, which she subsequently wheeled back into the store, despite her injuries.

A black-eyed Hansbrough was later informed she had been let go.

"I didn't expect to get terminated," said Hansbrough. "Maybe a reprimand or a suspension."

Hansbrough told WJCL-TV, "It's the first time I've ever been hit, first time I've ever had a black eye, first time I've ever been fired in my life. I've had lots of jobs, but never fired."

Following her painful exit, Hansbrough indicated she would have to go job hunting because idling at home was not an option.

The Effingham Herald reported that Lowe's issued a statement Monday, noting, "After senior management became aware of the incident and spoke to Donna Hansbrough today, we are reinstating her job and we are pleased that she has accepted the offer to return to Lowe's."

Larry Costello, senior manager of corporate communications at Lowe's, added, "First and foremost, there’s nothing more important than the safety of our customers and associates. Products can be replaced; people cannot. We continue to work closely with law enforcement to investigate and prosecute those who are responsible for this theft and violent attack."

Police indicated that Joseph Berry was apprehended in Jacksonville, Florida, on July 22, and is now in custody. Lawton had been previously captured. Takyah Berry, meanwhile, remains at large. She is suspected of having committed a similar theft at a Walmart in Chatham County.

Rincon police: Lowes employee fired after trying to stop theft. Officers now seeking suspectsyoutu.be

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Video: Shoplifter brazenly stuffs store items down his pants; female worker tries to stop him. Later, she's criticized for trying to prevent theft.



A female employee of a San Francisco Walgreens was seen on video trying to stop a male shoplifter from stealing items — and she was later criticized for trying to prevent the theft.

What are the details?

According to the Twitter user who posted the video, the shoplifting took place 10 a.m. Sunday at the Walgreens at the intersection of Geary and Taylor Streets in the city's Tenderloin district.

The clip shows the woman worker — identified by the Twitter user only as "Mary" — following the grey-hooded man down an aisle and telling him she's "called the police already."

The shoplifter then brazenly reaches into the shelves and stuffs several items down his pants — and Mary calls him out for it, just inches from him.

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @darren_stallcup

“Hey! Hey! Hey! What are you doing?” Mary yells. “Don’t stuff your pants! Take that out!”

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @darren_stallcup, composite

Here's the clip:

\u201cWas getting some groceries at my local @Walgreens when a barbarian ransacked the store. Asian American frontline worker (Mary) is NOT afraid. This is not her first rodeo! #SanFrancisco \n@EricaJSandberg @bettersoma @activeasian @RawRicci415 @Twolfrecovery @Ktvu @bbc @npr @cnn @wsj\u201d
— THE WORLD PEACE MOVEMENT \u5510\u4eba\u8857\u725b\u4ed4\u4e16\u754c\u548c\u5e73\u8fd0\u52a8 (@THE WORLD PEACE MOVEMENT \u5510\u4eba\u8857\u725b\u4ed4\u4e16\u754c\u548c\u5e73\u8fd0\u52a8) 1659293879

"Was getting some groceries at my local Walgreens when a barbarian ransacked the store," the poster's tweet read. "Asian American frontline worker (Mary) is NOT afraid. This is not her first rodeo!"

According to KTVU-TV, a "second video shows the alleged thief leaving the store, and another worker can be heard telling him to 'pull them drawers up.'"

"Barbarian really showing his a**," the same Twitter user said, according to the station. "Asian American worker Mary STILL ain’t scared. Going above and beyond the call of duty." But it appears that tweet and video have been deleted.

KTVU said it's unclear if police went to the Walgreens during or after the incident.

San Francisco shoplifters have plagued Walgreens — and other stores — in recent years, and a number of Walgreens in the city have closed as a result.

How did folks react?

While some Twitter users praised the Walgreens worker for trying to stop the theft, many others criticized her for it:

  • "Walgreens needs to suspend her for this," one user declared. "She should not be risking her life over corporate profits."
  • "This is how employees get murdered. Girl let that man keep them bags of chips. They not even half-full anyway," another commenter said before incorrectly calling the store "Walmart" and adding that it "will hire another dummy in know time if she was killed."
  • "There is nothing in that store that is worth your life and health," another user wrote. "You'd get fired and screwed over if you got injured by that nonpaying customer."
  • "She should’ve left him alone," another commenter said. "She’s so lucky, he could’ve struck her. It’s not worth your safety & life stopping him."
  • "This is absolutely against company policy. There are literal training videos that show that this is NOT what employees are supposed to do. (I may, or may not, have seen that training)," another user said. "I would bet that this woman will be getting written up, if not fired..."
  • "She is stupid," another commenter wrote. "Could have gotten her teeth knocked out. Not worth it.... Corporate insurance covers loss. Btw she is violating Walgreen[s'] employee policy for physically trying to intervene, Call police is her only policy duty."

Oh, and one commenter mocked the crook and what soft-on-crime San Francisco recently has become: "Please don’t shame this man! He is a valued, loyal customer of our beautiful, historic, open-air drug market. We love it when he brings toiletries, OTC meds, and other new, unopened merchandise to trade for fentanyl."

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GOYA Employee of the Month: AOC | 12/8/20

GOYA Employee of the Month: AOC | 12/8/20

AOC named Goya Foods 'employee of the month' after her call for a boycott caused huge spike in sales



Goya Food CEO Bob Unanue has revealed that democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's (D-N.Y.) call for Democrats to boycott his company's products over his praise of President Donald Trump actually led to skyrocketing sales so monumental that he named the congresswoman "employee of the month."

What are the details?

Over the summer, Unanue took part in a business roundtable at the White House, after which he said during a speech in the Rose Garden, "We're all truly blessed at the same time to have a leader like President Trump, who is a builder."

In reaction, Ocasio-Cortez tweeted, "Oh look, it's the sound of me Googling 'how to make your own Adobo," joining other Democrats in rallying behind an attempted boycott of the Hispanic-owned company.

Oh look, it's the sound of me Googling “how to make your own Adobo" https://t.co/YOScAcyAnC
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez)1594340572.0

Apparently, the attempted boycott had just the opposite effect that was intended.

The Daily Wire reported that Unanue told "The Michael Berry Show":

"You know, communism works until you run out of other people's money to spend. We're not going to be able to do that. It's interesting that AOC was one of the first people to step in line to boycott Goya; go against her own people, as supposedly a Puerto Rican woman, to go against people of her own Latin culture. She's naïve. To some extent I can understand AOC; she's young; she's naïve; she doesn't get it. But you've got someone like (Bernie) Sanders, who's older than us, older than me, and he still doesn't get it."

The CEO then divulged:

"We still have to chat with AOC; I love her. She was actually our Employee of the Month; I don't know if you know about this, but when she boycotted us, our sales actually increased 1,000%. So we gave her an honorary — we never were able to hand it to her but she got Employee of the Month for bringing attention to GOYA and our adobo. Actually our sales of adobo did very well after she said 'Make your own Adobo.'"

Unanue has worked with both Democrats and Republicans, and stood his ground in defending his praise of Trump despite immediate calls by Democrats to boycott his business in July.

The CEO told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" at the time that he was disappointed by the double standard shown.

"You're allowed to talk good or to praise one president, but you're not allowed — when I was called to be part of this commission to aid in economic and educational prosperity and you make positive comment, all of the sudden that's not acceptable," Unanue said.

"I'm not apologizing for saying — and especially when you're called by the president of the United States, you're gonna say, 'No, I'm sorry, I'm busy. No, thank you,'" he insisted. "I didn't say that to the Obamas and I didn't say that to President Trump."