Man, 32, arrested after Nando’s waitress slapped in the face with a plate
A man has been arrested on suspicion of assault after a waitress was hit in the face with a plate at a London Nando’s restaurant.
CCTV footage shows Zahra, the waitress, delivering a tray of food to a table where a man and woman were sat with their child in March last year.
The man then appears to have leaned forward and whacked her in the face with a plate as she lay the tray on the table.
It reportedly followed an outburst from the man when he was told he’d have to move tables to use a highchair for his child.
A 32-year-old man was arrested on January 30. Police said: ‘He was taken into police custody and has been bailed until a date in mid-March pending further enquiries. An investigation into the incident remains ongoing.’
It’s taken nearly a year for police to make an arrest, despite the waitress reporting the incident to police who were present in the restaurant at the time.
‘I was grossly let down by them’, Zahra said in a TikTok video in August after sharing a clip of the attack.
The case was re-opened after it went viral. She said: ‘I don’t think the situation would have garnered as much attention as it has, but the support has been overwhelming.’
At the time, police said: ‘We are aware of a video circulating online showing an incident in a branch of Nando’s in Stratford which took place in March.
‘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.’
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A spokesperson for Nando’s previously said: ‘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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