A customer enraged over stale bread allegedly slapped an employee at a Subway restaurant in The Villages.
An officer responded to the assault at the Subway at Pinellas Plaza in The Villages around 11 a.m. Tuesday, according to an arrest report from the Wildwood Police Department. Dispatch advised that 43-year-old Roy McIntosh of Wildwood was upset about the hardness of his bread and slapped an employee in the face.
When an officer arrived, he found the Subway employee had redness and slight swelling on the left side of his face. He explained that McIntosh came into the business visibly upset about the hardness of the bread used for his sandwich. They spoke briefly until McIntosh suddenly struck him across the side of his face, the report said.
Surveillance cameras captured the slap from multiple angles and a customer was also a witness. The surveillance showed McIntosh walking up to the counter to speak with the employee and then delivering the blow. The employee immediately stepped back in apparent shock. McIntosh then pointed his finger at the employee, continued to speak and left the building, the report said.
McIntosh drove away from Subway in “a work vehicle,” and officers were able to find him later that day. The report did not disclose what kind of work McIntosh performs.
He admitted to slapping the employee, saying he was intentionally given old, stale bread on his sandwich from the previous week due to his prior relationship with the store manager. He explained the sandwich was for his mother, not him. He went back to the store to confront the employee, who “laughed.” The laughter prompted McIntosh to strike the employee, the report said.
McIntosh was arrested on a charge of battery and booked at the Sumter County Detention Center. He was released after posting $1,000 bond.