Restaurant Employee Allegedly Shoots and Injures 3 in Scuffle with Dine-and-Dasher

The China Cafeteria in Dekalb County, Georgia is never going to be known for its food. Its current rating on Yelp is an underwhelming 1.5 stars and, of the seven total reviews, the most complimentary was the one that described its offerings as being “mall-type, cheap (but better).” But now, in addition to having a reputation for “General Tso chicken that tastes like a corn-dog dipped in ketchup,” now it’s a place where the employees will allegedly shoot you if you leave without paying.

According to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, an unidentified man ate at the China Cafeteria on Wednesday night and then tried a low-speed dine-and-dash by walking directly out of the restaurant and into the parking lot. Two employees followed him out the door and argued with him for almost a full block, finally confronting him in the parking lot of a nearby Burger King.

“During the fight, one of the employees left and retrieved a firearm and subsequently all three individuals suffered gunshot wounds,” Sgt. J.D. Spencer, a spokesperson for the Dekalb County Police Department, told the AJC. “All three were transported to a local hospital, one individual in critical condition.”

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The shooter, identified as China Cafeteria worker Xin Xing Chen, has been charged with aggravated assault. The cops say that Chen shot his coworker accidentally; that person is reportedly in stable condition. (The customer is the “individual in critical condition,” and no information about Chen’s condition has been released)

A different employee who was not involved in the shooting told WSB-TV that Chen “had no choice” but to shoot the other man, because he had been “fighting with [Chen’s] relatives in the parking lot.” This same person said that the restaurant was temporarily closed, due to the injuries to Chen and the other member of the staff (and not because one of them shot another person).

“I come here because it’s affordable. I like the food. I can’t see somebody getting shot over a $5 meal. I just can’t see it,” one China Cafeteria regular said. “I can find something similar at a much safer place. I got kids. They need me to come home and not [get killed] because someone is shooting over a $5 meal.”

True, on all counts.