An episode of violence and chaos involving an American citizen at a fast-food restaurant in Playa del Carmen has become one of the most viral videos of this Christmas season.
The incident occurred at a Taco Bell branch located inside the Centro Maya shopping center and was captured by several witnesses, reaching over 10 million views on TikTok in just a few hours.
In the footage circulating on social media, the man, who was accompanied by his children, can be seen losing his temper after feeling his order wasn’t being served as quickly as he expected.
During his outburst, the man began verbally confronting a female employee and then threw the computer used to manage orders to the floor, causing damage and creating a tense atmosphere between customers and staff.
The manager, reportedly of Argentinian nationality, called for assistance from those present as the situation escalated. According to the video, the customer’s outburst not only caused damage to the furniture but also injured an employee, requiring security intervention.
The employee, visibly upset, complained about the damages and asked for immediate help: “What’s going on? What’s going on? Are you going to pay for everything you broke? Can you call security?” The man who was recording replied, “I recorded it at the end,” to which she insisted, “Yes, please. Call the police.”
Minutes later, an officer approached the affected area and asked, “Hello. Is everything alright? A customer told me there was a problem here, that someone knocked over a computer.” The employee pointed to the person responsible, and the officer confirmed, “Well, the gentleman wants to pay for the computer so he won’t be booked. Um, I don’t know if you’ll reach an agreement or…”
The employee explained that the damage went beyond the destroyed equipment: “We have to go to the supermarket and buy it now without any problem, because it doesn’t work… and not only that, but when he threw everything, he hurt my coworker.” She even showed the injuries: “And look how he cut him.” The witness added: “I mean, it’s not like he can just pay and leave.”
The worker also detailed the origin of the conflict: “The man got angry because he wanted his order, and I had told him to wait because I had two barbecues before him… when he threw everything, his order was coming out.” When the authorities insisted on reaching a financial agreement, the woman was clear: “No, I don’t want the computer, and I want them to pay for the things… and my coworker has to buy him the gauze to treat his wound.”
Finally, after several exchanges, the decision was firm: the employee would press charges, and the American man was arrested.
The video sparked a wave of reactions on social media, where users harshly criticized the foreigner’s behavior. “The worst thing he did was throw a tantrum in front of his children, he should be ashamed,” “I mean, he got desperate because his food wasn’t ready yet,” “No way, and then at Taco Bell, what a crazy gringo”; “And his children with embarrassed faces watching their father being arrested for a tantrum,” were some of the most shared comments.
Source: infobae
