Gwinnett County

Wendy's employee accused of assaulting customer arrested on job, fired

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Gwinnett County fast-food employee is facing criminal charges because police say he lost his temper with a customer.

The customer, who asked that we not use her name, told Channel 2's Matt Johnson that she was sitting in her car in the drive-thru and had questions about her order after she paid for it.

The situation unfolded at the Wendy’s on Lawrenceville Suwanee Road Thursday afternoon.

Apparently one of the store managers had little patience for her and she said the worker threw a big cup full of ice right at her head.

The customer said she had questions about how much her order cost.

“I said, ‘Hi. Can you please explain to me what I ordered?' And he said, ‘Oh, if you’d been paying attention there you would have got your order right,’” the customer told Johnson.

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That's when she said the worker, Roman Caple, threw her credit card to the ground. That’s when she asked for a refund.

“As I picked my card up, I said, ‘You're in the wrong business, this is not the way you treat people.'"

Within seconds she said Caple filled up a cup with ice and threw it at her while she sat in her car.

“He loaded up a cup of ice, big chunks of ice, and he smashed me in the face with the ice,” the customer said. “I was like, ‘Did someone just physically hit me when I’m trying to get an order and ask for a refund?’”

Suwanee police arrested Caple and charged him with simple battery, as well as drug possession, after they say they found a pipe with marijuana in his car.

“He’s probably under the influence, not in the right state of mind,” the customer said.

Johnson went inside the restaurant Friday and an employee told him Caple now works at a different location.

The customer told Johnson he shouldn't be working in customer service at all.

“What I want Wendy’s to do is take accountability for this incident. It’s nothing you can just overlook,” the customer said.

The employee bonded out of jail Thursday night.

Johnson contacted the corporate office at Wendy’s Friday night and received this statement:

"The safety of our customers and team members is our top priority. We take matters like this very seriously, and upon learning that one of our team members was involved in this incident, we took immediate action. The individual involved is no longer employed by our organization."