A Trader Joe's in New York City was at the center of a horrifying melee recently, when two maskless men refused to cover their faces and started assaulting the employees who asked them to, according to the New York City Police Department.
At one point, one of the men, in his 30s, ripped the mask off the face of a TJ's worker, then began smashing another employee over the head with a wooden paddle and then pulled the hair of a third employee, as reported exclusively by VICE.
According to the police spokesperson, the employee who was hit with the wooden paddle (used by Trader Joe's cashiers to signal that they're ready to check out a new customer) began bleeding and was rushed to the hospital.
Trader Joe's requires all customers and employees to wear face coverings while shopping or working in the store. One witness to the incident says the men told an employee that masks wouldn't be necessary after the presidential election -- indicating that President Donald Trump would be reelected.
One of the customers screamed, "Don't make me get my gun," according to the NYPD spokesperson.
At least seven employees were injured in the attack, and both men were arrested.
Employees at the store told VICE that they believe the incident, which took place on July 14, was never addressed or widely reported on because the store doesn't want to scare customers away.
"We are putting ourselves at risk every day. We are forced to come to work to do our jobs because we have no other choice. To see my family here get punched and hurt because some customers think they're better than us is not OK," the worker who witnessed the attack told VICE. "Don't hurt people who are not at fault. We're just trying to stay safe and not die."
A Trader Joe's shopper in North Hollywood was caught on camera in an anti-mask tirade that's been seen millions of times online.
It was opening day at the Trader Joe's store when the shopper who's since gone viral tried to go grocery shopping without a face covering.
"I have a breathing problem, basically, from my nose," the woman said.
