A WAITRESS who was brutally slapped with a plate by a customer has broken her silence after the “unprovoked” attack.
The horrifying assault is believed to have taken place at a Nando’s restaurant in Stratford, London, in March and was captured by CCTV cameras.
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Now the victim has taken to social media to say she was “grossly let down” by the Metropolitan Police and criticise the response to the “savage” incident.
In a seven-minute video, the woman said: “I don’t think the situation would have garnered as much attention as it has, but the support has been overwhelming.
“So with all the attention that the video has gotten and seeing everything in the news about violence against women, violence against young women, the violence against girls, I think it’s important to speak up about what actually took place.
“Before explaining [what happened], I want to say what’s more concerning than the mass behaviour was the failure of the Metropolitan Police and their conduct.
“I was grossly let down by them. They have reopened the investigation now.
“Thanks for all of the support and the attention it’s been receiving online. And for that I’m grateful.
“However, I was really disappointed and let down with what happened at the time with the police.”
The footage, which has gone viral on X this week, shows the waitress serving a man, woman and child.
As she places the food down in front of the man, he appears to lunge forwards and “slaps” her with a plate.
The woman accompanying him appears stunned and quickly gathers the child to leave – with the man in tow.
The waitress appears to shout something before quickly walking away.
Onlookers look shocked as the family exit the premises.
The clip was shared online saying the man “slapped an employee round the face with a plate”.
A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: “We are aware of a video circulating online showing an incident in a branch of Nando’s in Stratford which took place in March.
“A report of assault was made to police at the time of the incident, however, it appears this was not progressed promptly by officers.
“We are working to establish why this happened and accept this is not the level of service Londoners should rightfully expect from the Met.
“We have since made contact with the victim and a statement has been taken – we will endeavour to keep her updated with the progress of this investigation.
“There has been no arrest and enquiries are ongoing to locate the man involved.
“Anyone who can provide information about this incident should call 101 ref CAD 1872/21 Aug.
A spokesperson for Nando’s said: “This was a shocking and unprovoked attack earlier this year.
“We reported it to the police immediately and have supported our colleague since.
“We will not tolerate this kind of behaviour, the safety of our colleagues and customers is our priority.”
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