An elderly woman has died in Indiana following a physical altercation with a Tim Hortons employee over a drive-thru order, according to police. Anita Grayson, 75, entered the coffee shop in Fort Wayne on May 13 after reportedly receiving an incorrect order.
Surveillance footage released by the Fort Wayne Police Department shows Ms Grayson approaching the counter and berating a 17-year-old female employee. A 20-year-old shift lead intervened, repeatedly telling Ms Grayson to leave. The footage then shows Ms Grayson pushing the shift lead and hitting her in the face. The shift lead retaliated, causing both women to fall to the ground.
During the struggle, Ms Grayson grabbed the shift lead's face, removing her glasses and pulling out a chunk of her hair. Other employees separated the pair, after which Ms Grayson sat at a table and made a phone call. Shortly thereafter, she lay down on the floor. The shift lead checked on her and offered water, police said.
When police arrived, Ms Grayson was unresponsive. Medics performed life-saving measures, but she was later pronounced dead at hospital. Ms Grayson's daughter, Tawnda Grayson, said her mother had congestive heart failure and was wearing a heart monitor. “My mother was wronged in the worst way,” she said.
The police initially planned not to release the footage but did so to counter what they called a “dangerously false narrative” circulating online. Tim Hortons expressed condolences, saying the franchisee is cooperating with the investigation. The Allen County Coroner’s Office has not yet determined the cause and manner of death, though preliminary findings indicated no significant contributory injuries.
