Restaurant worker attacked by ‘dine-and-dash’ customer who left £30 bill

HomeNewsUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessWorld of BusinessTechnology of BusinessNYSE Opening BellTechnologyWatch DocumentariesArtificial IntelligenceIntelligence RevolutionAI v the MindTech NowHealthWatch DocumentariesCultureWatch DocumentariesFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsWatch DocumentariesArts in MotionTravelWatch DocumentariesDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListTo the Ends of the Earth EarthWatch DocumentariesScienceNatural WondersClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingAudioPodcast CategoriesRadioAudio FAQsVideoWatch DocumentariesBBC MaestroDiscover the WorldLiveLive NewsLive SportDocumentariesSite searchHomeNewsSportBusinessTechnologyHealthCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveDocumentariesWeatherNewslettersRestaurant worker attacked by 'dine-and-dash' customer who left £30 bill26 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleDan WareingNorth WestNoodle ValleyThe staff member initially gave chase after the group refused to payA Chinese restaurant worker has described the moment she was attacked by a "dine-and-dash" customer who fled after leaving without paying a £30 bill.

Noodle Alley on Faulkner Street in Manchester city centre posted CCTV footage on Facebook of the period leading up to the incident, which saw the 28-year-old female staff member thrown to the floor.

It shows three people leaving the restaurant and the staff member initially chasing after them.

The woman, who has asked to remain anonymous, said she was "pushed to the ground" when she tried to confront one of the group and was left in tears with bruises on her right arm.

Greater Manchester Police confirmed they are investigating the incident, which happened at 17:30 BST on Sunday 27 September.

The woman said the three customers' order came to £30 and included a cucumber salad.

"I didn't understand why they did it because they were so nice, but apparently that's just how they were," she said.

The woman, who lives in Manchester, described how she and a colleague spotted one of the men walking around a street corner near the shop.

"We stopped him and tried to talk him back to the restaurant, although now I know it was not worth doing that," she said.

The man then saw someone he knew and summoned them over, she said.

"Now it was two-verses-two and he pushed me to ground, and then the other person told the man to go," she continued.

"They showed no sympathy or compassion at all because I was still on the ground and got hurt, but he still went away.

"I couldn't stop crying that day and called 999 and they suggested I go to A&E."

It all happened when the owners of the restaurant were away.

Kenneth Chen, who opened the venue with his wife Wendy in May 2023, was on his way back from London after dropping his son off for his first year of university when he found out what had happened.

Chen said: "My staff member started to send me pictures of her injuries and the first thing which came to my mind was to rush to the restaurant to make sure everyone was fine.

"During that moment, I said I we can't just let this off, because I believe similar dine- and-dash incidents happen at a lot of other restaurants, and she was just trying to do her job."

He described the gravity of posting the CCTV footage on social media, and how there might be "consequences".

"As a small, independent, family business there comes a risk with putting out names in the spotlight," he said.

"I know there can be consequences for us, but we are already feeling the financial and emotional impact of what happened and so I felt like we couldn't just stay quiet."

Greater Manchester Police confirmed they were looking into "an alleged assault" at the premises and released a photo of one of a men they want to speak to, saying "we believe he can help with our investigation".

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