A Dunkin’ Donuts employee, who was scalded after having hot coffee thrown into her face by a customer, says she’s not angry with the man responsible.
"Sometimes people like that need help, they need help to control their anger. I hope he gets the help he deserves,” Sheree Sutton tells NBC10 in an exclusive interview Friday night.
The 26-year-old was working the counter at the popular coffee chain’s location in the Logan section of Philadelphia on Wednesday when she got into an argument with a male customer over an expired coupon.
She said the man, known only to shop employees and police as “Will,” suddenly became enraged after she wouldn’t honor the coupon.
"I was in shock, I saw him keep jumping at me. I knew he was going to do something," she said.
He refused the leave the store and then, as surveillance video shows, he winds up and throws a large cup of hot coffee into Sutton’s face.
"It was hot, yeah, but most of it hit my shirt the same time it hit my face, so I didn't feel as much, but I felt it," she said.
Luckily, Sutton only suffered minor injuries. But Philadelphia Police say the situation could have been much worse.
"Any time someone acts so violently over for such a minor situation, that person is unstable. We don't need him going into a store and trying to hurt somebody,” Lt. George McClay of Philadelphia Police’s Northwest Detectives division.
“Will” remains on the loose and detectives are asking the public to help identify him. If he’s arrested, police say they plan to hit him with several charges including aggravated assault, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person.
As for Sutton, she’s not letting the assault keep her from work, but what happens is seared into her memory.
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"That will be a day I'll never forget in my entire life," she said.
