A Monday evening dinner excursion ended in arrest after a customer cut ahead of other patrons, forced his way into a restaurant’s kitchen, and physically assaulted an employee over a bag of food he had not paid for, according to authorities.
Polk County sheriff’s deputies responded to a Winter Haven restaurant at approximately 6:45 p.m. following reports of a disruptive customer assaulting a staff member.
According to investigators, the incident began when 49-year-old John Joseph Sarlo bypassed another customer waiting at the counter and aggressively confronted staff regarding his takeout order. In response to his hostile behavior, the employee refused to release the food, as Sarlo had not yet completed payment.
Rather than accepting the situation, Sarlo forced his way past the counter and into the restricted employee area, where he seized the packaged order himself. When the employee intervened and attempted to retrieve the meal, Sarlo blocked him, shoved him, and struck him on the arm.
The employee followed Sarlo into the parking lot, where a woman accompanying Sarlo acknowledged that the order had never been paid for. Sarlo responded by throwing the food onto the ground before fleeing the scene.
Deputies located Sarlo shortly afterward and took him into custody. During questioning, Sarlo acknowledged that he had lost his composure, stating he was “sorry it happened, but he was frustrated over the customer service.”
That frustration carried serious legal consequences. Sarlo was booked into the Polk County Jail on charges of burglary with battery, a first-degree felony, in addition to a misdemeanor charge of petit theft.
Leave a Reply