A Connecticut man has been charged with intimidation based on bigotry or bias, breach of peace, and criminal trespassing after allegedly hurling a drink and racist insults at employees in a local smoothie shop, who he blamed for a serious allergic reaction that caused his son to go to the hospital.
James Iannazzo, 48, was charged according to the Fairfield Police Department. Iannazzo allegedly returned to a Robeks smoothie location Saturday after his son had an allergic reaction, where he berated staff to tell him who put peanut butter in his child’s drink.
“When employees could not provide Iannazzo with the answer he became irate, yelling at the employees using a number of expletives,” police said. “He then threw a drink at an employee, which hit their right shoulder.”
Police also said that Iannazzo made a comments to an employee “referencing their immigration status.” He continued to yell at the employees and allegedly attempted to open a door to the Robeks’ “employee only” area after being asked to leave multiple times.
Iannazzo left the store before authorities could arrive but later turned himself into police.
Video purporting to be Iannazzo calling one of the employees an “immigrant loser” after throwing a drink circulated on social media over the weekend.
When asked to verify the video circulating online, Fairfield Sgt. Michael Stahl told NBC News it appeared to be a screen recording of a video depicting the event.
“As it is not the original, we cannot comment on the authenticity of it and cannot guarantee it has not been altered or edited in any way,” Stahl said Sunday.
Iannazzo’s attorney, Frank Riccio, said in a statement Sunday morning that his client “wholeheartedly regrets the incident.” The attorney added that the Iannazzo stressed to staff that his drink not contain peanut butter, because his son had a life threatening allergy.
“When faced with a dire situation for his son, Mr. Iannazzo’s parental instinct kicked in and he acted out of anger and fear,” Riccio said. “He is not a racist individual and deeply regrets his statements and actions during a moment of extreme emotional stress.”
Employees of the restaurant told police that Iannazzo did ask for his drink to be made without peanut butter, but made no mention of an allergy.
Merrill Lynch confirmed that Iannazzo no longer works as a financial advisor with the company following the incident.
“Our company does not tolerate behavior of this kind,” the company said in a statement Sunday. “We immediately investigated and have taken action. This individual is no longer employed at our firm.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
