Mother Brutally Beaten In Front Of Son By McDonald's Employee Speaks Out
SALEM, N.J. (CBS) – A mother is speaking out after a fast food worker in full uniform brutally attacked her in front of her two-year-old son, and the whole incident was caught on camera.
Police are still searching for the woman responsible. The victim, Catherine Ferreira, a college student who dreams of becoming a surgeon, suffered a broken nose and a concussion in the assault.
Ferreira used to work at McDonald's with the suspect, Latia Harris. She blames workplace gossip for the attack.
She says of the vicious beating, "I could have been dead right now, had she hit me in the right spot it would have been over, over nothing. McDonald's isn't worth it, a guy isn't worth it. This is more serious than you're even comprehending."
Sadly, Ferreira's two-year-old son is the only one who tried to intervene in the attack, while others stood by taking cell phone video.
Ferreira says, "After that I became so much closer to my son because he didn't care what was going on. He wasn't afraid, he just wanted to defend his mom. That's my world right there, I love that boy so much."
To make matters worse, Harris even threatened to hit the toddler while he attempted to help his mother. She can be heard saying, "You better get your son before I kick him in the face too!"
At the end of the video, the Harris appears to spit on the victim as she lays helplessly on the ground.
McDonald's owner Jim Burglaga confirmed the video shows one of his workers:
"I am aware of the incident involving one of my employees earlier this week. I am extremely disturbed by this kind of behavior and it goes against the values and standards that I expect from my employees in my restaurants. This employee will not be serving customers pending this important police investigation and I'm fully cooperating with the local police in this matter."
Police say Latia Harris, 25, of Salem, will be charged with aggravated assault and terroristic threats for making threats against the victim and her toddler son.
