DELTONA, Fla. – A 22-year-old woman is in custody Tuesday after deputies say she attacked a customer while working at a Wendy’s in Deltona.
Julia Martin was the manager of Wendy’s fast-food restaurant at 2210 Saxon Boulevard. Monday night, deputies were called to the restaurant for a burglary call, with dispatchers also reporting a fight.
Deputies met the victim in a vehicle in the parking lot of the Wendy’s where he told authorities he was trying to place an order when Martin physically assaulted him.
According to an incident report, the victim had pulled up to the drive-thru to order three double cheeseburgers. The employee at the drive-thru asked the customer to pull up to a parking spot as they prepared his order.
When the victim asked why he needed to move, he told deputies the employee gave him a “smart (expletive)” answer. That’s when the victim asked to speak with the manager, according to a report.
Deputies spoke with two employees who handled the victim’s food order saying they asked him to move forward. When questioned, they responded saying it was “to make your food.”
The victim retorted saying, “are you saying it’s my fault?” according to witness testimony outlined in the incident report.
The woman working the drive-thru window then told him no, they would just need him to pull forward. Martin overheard the conversation and said she would take care of delivering his order, the report reads.
The man did park in a spot and waited for his order. Martin brought it out to him a few minutes later and as she approached the car, the man started to explain the situation and what he deemed inconvenient service, according to the incident report.
Authorities said the man reported Martin was less than pleasant and disregarded his concerns, prompting him to threaten to call Wendy’s corporation to report his dissatisfaction.
At that time, Martin handed the victim his order and, according to the incident report, the two exchanged a few words before Martin struck the man through his open vehicle window.
The report reads the man was punched multiple times and scratched on the face, neck and chest. During the confrontation, his gold chain, which is valued at $500, broke off and a Miami Dolphins charm had fallen in between the seats of the car.
The man told authorities the attack had gone on for several minutes with Martin walking away at one point and returning to deliver more blows. For the second round of strikes, Martin had keys in her hand while punching the customer and eventually threw them at his face, the incident report reads.
Deputies said the victim kept the keys and refused to give them back to Martin until law enforcement arrived.
After speaking with Martin, the Wendy’s manager told law enforcement she never struck the customer and she had keys in her hand because she had to lock up the manager’s office as she stepped outside to deliver his order.
She said the customer swiped the keys from her hand after complaining about the employee at the drive-thru window, insulting both the employee and Martin with derogatory comments, according to the report.
Deputies said Martin’s account of the incident changed multiple times, and the customer had visible but minor injuries to his face and neck.
Records show in a 911 call, Martin said the customer swung at her first.
“He got mad as he was talking and he shoved me. He said ‘expletive you’ and he shoved me,” Martin said.
She reiterated several times what she said happened.
“I’m the manager. I went out there to give him his food and he said he had an issue with somebody in the window, so he took the food from me and then he pushed me and I had my keys in my hand ’cause my office is locked and then he took the keys from me and now... he won’t give them back,” she said.
Deputies determined the 22-year-old had battered the customer. She was taken to the Volusia County Jail but has since been released on her own recognizance.
It is unclear if the customer ever consumed his order.