Management at a McDonald’s reportedly caught an employee tampering with food being prepared for a police officer. The employee was taken into custody after the local sheriff’s office was made aware of the incident.
The suspect had previously accused the local police department of excessive force for a 2017 encounter with law enforcement officers where she first made headlines. hile assaulting two police officers resisting arrest, Tatyana Hargrove was bitten by a police canine. The Bakersfield NAACP, on behalf of Hargrove, sued the Bakersfield Police Department (BPD) for “civil rights violations,” and the jury sided with the BPD when the DA declined to bring charges against her.
Now, following the discovery of CCTV footage, according to KGET, she was seen spitting on a hamburger patty that a police officer in Bakersfield had eaten and rubbing hamburger buns on the ground. Hargrove, a worker at McDonald’s, made news once more!
In addition, the publication reported that while a different McDonald’s employee claimed to have heard Hargrove spit into her mouth as she prepared the meal, surveillance video later reveals Hargrove wiping her lips with her arm, showing that she spit on the food.
The officer was in a black and white patrol cruiser, according to the report, and was wearing his full uniform. The investigator, Deputy Carly Snow, testified that Hargrove stated she uttered those words because she knew the burger would be given to a police officer.
When deputies questioned McDonald’s manager Herman Trevino about the incident, Trevino claimed that Hargrove also shouted “black lives matter” and “f*ck the pigs,” despite saying that he had warned Hargrove not to.
Trevino, who also reported the incident to the police, said to a Kerns County deputy, “She dropped the buns and I thought she was just being funny… so I told her, I was like, “Don’t give him those buns.”
When questioned about the incident although she said she didn’t spit on the hamburger, the KABC reported. —When the deputy arrived at Hargrove’s house, she was arrested. Hargrove said that she was in a rush, dropped a burger, and still used it.
“When you’re in the back cooking and you’re in a rush, like sometimes you’ll be like, ‘Oh ok, it’s a five-second rule’, which is very inconsiderate, don’t get me wrong. But, unfortunately, I chose to make the decision which is very odd,” Hargrove told the deputy.
The preliminary hearing didn’t go well for the accused. Even though Deputy Public Defender Lexi Blythe, Hargrove’s attorney, maintained there wasn’t enough evidence for the felony charges brought against her client, Judge Larrie R. Brainard believed there was enough evidence to pursue felony charges and also believed Hargrove should be sentenced to jail time.
The KGET added that when Tatyana Hargrove was facing serious repercussions, the public defender persuaded the former McDonald’s employee to take a plea deal and admit to the “willful mingling of poison or a harmful substance with food.”
“Tatyana Hargrove entered the plea before Judge Charles R. Brehmer. Under the terms of the plea deal, Tatyana Hargrove agreed to serve 45 days in jail, perform 100 hours of community service and receive mental health counseling.”
Prosecutor Gina Pearl said, “It is absolutely unacceptable to target police officers in our community. Today, the defendant took responsibility for her disgusting and dangerous actions.”
Pearl is hoping that Tatyana Hargrove makes the most of the opportunity because she has the chance to complete probation and turn her life around after serving her jail time.
Watch the video below for more details:
Sources: TapHaps, Turnto23, Kget
