Summary: A Pennsylvania man threatened to kill a Wendy’s employee when his salad didn’t have enough cucumbers on it.
Fast food workers beware! Go light on the condiments and you may see the ugly side of customers. A Wendy’s employee learned this the hard way from a Pennsylvania man that wanted more cucumbers on his salad.
Theodore L. Gunderson Jr., 58, was so upset that his salad did not have enough cucumbers that he threatened to kill the employee. The Smoking Gun reported that Gunderson entered the Earl Township Wendy’s around 3:40 pm Sunday to order a salad.
When Gunderson received his salad, the five-foot eight-inch, 240-pound man “immediately caused a disturbance in the business by throwing the salad at an employee because the salad did not have enough cucumbers.” He used obscene language in addition to the death threat.
According to the probable arrest warrant, Gunderson turned to the employee to say, “If I had a gun or a knife you would be the first to go.” The employee called the police department, fearing for his life.
A New Holland Police Officer was called. When he arrived on the scene, Gunderson had already returned to his vehicle. Officer Michael Specht reported, “The defendant then refused to put his window down or get out of his vehicle.” Eventually, Gunderson lowered his window to talk with Officer Specht.
The officer told Gunderson that he was not allowed to go and “was being placed under arrest.” He then reached into Gunderson’s car to grab the keys from the ignition. Gunderson hit the gas and began to “drive away with the Officer’s hand and arm still inside the vehicle.” Officer Specht took “multiple steps” in order to get his arm out of the moving vehicle and “keep himself from tripping and possibly falling under the car.”
Gunderson was arrested for assaulting a police officer, which is a felony, and three misdemeanors for making terroristic threats, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. He is held on $50,000 bail at the Lancaster County Prison.
Fortunately for the Wendy’s employee, Gunderson’s was carrying one of the knives that were found in his car. A search of his car revealed several knives.
These kinds of incidents are surprisingly common. In June, a couple in Georgia beat a restaurant owner and his teenage daughter because they weren’t satisfied with their meal. The couple had been refunded for their meal but they still resorted to beating the woman and punching her daughter.
There must be something about fast food, hunger, and lack of patience that puts customers and employees on edge. Not only do customers attack fast food restaurant employees over wrong orders or slow service but employees are known to make the first move. A Waffle House waitress was tired of hearing a customer complain about waiting for their food so she decked the customer in the head with her coffee pot.
Do you think these kinds of occurrences are common because of the type of people working there and the assumed service people will get from them or is violence just something to expect everywhere now? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
To learn more about violent food episodes, read these articles:
- Son Head-Butts Mother Because He Doesn’t Want to Eat Chick-fil-A
- Denny’s Workers Fight Over Hard-Boiled Egg
- Fast Food Worker Serves Burger with More Than Ketchup
Photo: ohsocrazy.com