Chicago McDonald’s Targeted in Hatchet-Wielding Attack

Three employees of a Chicago McDonald’s were seriously injured after a hatchet-wielding man attacked them for not giving him free food.

CBS News is reporting that the incident occurred just before 8 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 4, at the McDonald’s located at 7832 S. Western Ave. on Chicago’s South Side. The workers were struck with a hatchet.

A young man, 18, and two women, both 45, were reportedly working at the restaurant when an unidentified gentleman entered and asked the cashier for complimentary food, according to Chicago Police. The perpetrator showed the hatchet-like instrument to the cashier when she refused, and he started hitting all three victims.

In “good condition,” the 18-year-old was brought to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. Additionally, one of the women was brought to Advocate Christ in critical condition, while the second woman was brought to Holy Cross Hospital in better condition.

The individual who attacked the three came back later in the day, according to a call that police received hours after the crime. The call, which originated from Nicky’s Family Restaurant & Pancake House across the street, stated that the assailant was at the nearby 79th/Western Bus Terminal operated by the Chicago Transit Authority.

He was subsequently taken into custody without further incident, and charges will likely be filed against the man soon. The Chicago McDonald’s is now open after the attack.

“We are deeply upset by the violent attack that took place in our restaurant yesterday morning, harming three of our own team members,” McDonald’s said in a statement. “Nothing is more important than the safety of our employees and customers.”

News of McDonald’s latest issues come hot on the heels of Burger King’s latest controversy, when a New York mother found blood “spattered” all over her child’s food last week.

When Tiffany Floyd, a mother of a 4-year-old, pulled into a fast-food drive-thru in Getzville, New York, she was shocked to see her child’s food coated in what appeared to be red liquid.

“All I heard was, ‘Mom, I don’t want ketchup,’ so I grabbed her bag, thinking that they messed up our order again, and I looked and there was just blood all over her hamburger, all over the wrapper. I looked inside the bag, there’s blood on her toys, everything,” the mother told the the New York Post. “So I instantly told her to spit out her food. She did have fries and a bit of her hamburger. And then I looked at my meal, and there was blood on mine too.”

Floyd is now pursuing legal remedies against Burger King.

“We were deeply upset and concerned to learn of this incident. We have been in contact with the Guest and are working with her to resolve this incident. This incident was the result of a team member in the restaurant who injured his finger, and upon noticing immediately stepped away. We closed the restaurant to retrain all the team members and hired an external company to complete a deep cleaning,” Burger King said in a statement at the time of the incident. “We expect the restaurant to re-open Monday and are fully paying team members for any lost shifts during this temporary shut down.”