A customer who was denied service for not wearing a mask returned to a Burger King in Wayne and grabbed an employee by the neck, police said, who captured him shortly after.
A co-worker came to rescue the victim after David Sivertsen, 47, of Hackettstown started to choke her, said Detective Captain Dan Daly.
Police responded to the Route 23 diner on Saturday after Sivertsen argued with officials about wearing a mask, Daly said.
He was gone when they arrived, said the captain.
Surveillance video shows Sivertsen returning shortly after 4 pm
He grabbed an employee – who weighed 40 pounds – put his hands on her neck and started to choke her, said Daly.
A coworker scared him, said the captain.
The victim refused hospitalization while police searched for his attacker.
An alert patrol officer found a drunk Sivertsen sitting in a garage on the Newark-Pompton Highway.
“You got me,” said Sivertsen to the officer, said Daly.
He “looked agitated and appeared to be under the influence of alcohol,” said the captain.
It didn’t end there, he said.
At headquarters, Sivertsen “intentionally hit his head on the steel bench he was handcuffed to,” said Daly.
He was taken to a local hospital and, after being medically released, was admitted to Passaic County Jail to await his first appearance at the Central Court for Judicial Processing in Paterson on charges of aggravated assault.
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