A woman who was caught on video repeatedly ramming her car into a California taco restaurant is a former employee of the restaurant who hadn’t worked there in four years, according to the owner’s daughter.
The incident happened at about 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Tacos Reyes in Canoga Park. ABC7 No. 7 Reported.
Passersby who witnessed the chaos began filming, while others ran over to nearby police officers to warn them.
When officers arrived on scene, they saw the suspect repeatedly backing up and ramming his way into the store, according to the outlet.
Officers then surrounded her car and used non-lethal ammunition before pulling her out and arresting her.
According to the media, the suspect allegedly destroyed everything in the restaurant before being arrested.
She was hospitalized with minor injuries and later charged with criminal damage to property.
No other injuries were reported.
An employee at a bar next door to the taco joint recalled the moment they had to rush customers and co-workers out of the building because it “shared a wall” with the restaurant.
“She was just backing up and crashing into all these walls,” Bailey Thompson told ABC 7. “We were sharing a wall with them so she started crashing into our wall.”
The next day, Antonia Reyes, the restaurant owner’s daughter, told ABC7 the woman was a former employee and was shocked by what happened.
“When she left four years ago, we didn’t have a bad relationship. We had a really good relationship,” Reyes told the outlet.
“Her mom still works with us. She’s been working with us for … probably over eight years.”
Despite her vandalism destroying her family’s business, Reyes expressed sympathy for the suspect.
“We love her family very much. This is an unfortunate event and our hearts break for her.”
“We’re not going to let it go,” said Miguel Reyes, owner of Tacos Reyes. NBC Los Angeles He said he was glad that no one inside the restaurant was injured during the incident.
“Everybody got out through the emergency exit and thank God nothing happened,” the owner told the outlet. “If something had happened to anyone, I would have regretted it.”
Miguel Reyes also confirmed that the suspect was a former employee of the restaurant.
The restaurant will be closed until further notice.
Police told the outlet that the incident remains under investigation.
