A New Jersey man attacked a Burger King employee after he was asked to put on a face mask. The request led to a verbal argument with employees.
WLNY reports that 47-year-old David Siversten strangled a female employee at a Wayne, New Jersey location around 4 p.m. on March 27. The incident happened after Siversten had gone to the eatery the previous day, March 26, when the dispute over his mask first occurred. He then came back the following day, walked up to the employee, “wrapped both hands around [the employee’s] neck, and started strangling her,” Police Captain Dan Daly said, per Daily Beast. He also said that the attack ended when another female employee got involved.
According to police, he took off before officers got to the scene. Authorities later found him sitting in a nearby driveway. He was allegedly inebriated and told police, “you got me.” He apparently didn’t cooperate during the arrest and hit his head on a steel bench. He was subsequently arrested and charged with aggravated assault.
Even as millions across the U.S. have started getting vaccinated for the virus, many are still pushing back against mask policies. In March, a white woman in New York City was filmed calling a Black employee the n-word because she didn’t “believe in COVID” and didn’t want to wear a mask. When someone called her out for her derogatory remark, she can be heard saying, “I can call him whatever I want.”
