Cop knew Dunkin’ Donuts worker spit in coffee at the first sip, Wisconsin lawyer says
A Dunkin’ Donuts manager spit in a detective’s coffee and it was caught on surveillance video, a lawsuit says.
An attorney thinks the employee did it because his client is a police officer, WISN reports.
Detective Andrew Martin went to the Dunkin’ Donuts in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, a town in the Milwaukee area, and ordered an afternoon coffee in December 2017, according to the lawsuit filed Tuesday against the national chain. Though Martin was off duty, he’d bought coffee at the shop many times before while on duty, attorney Ryan Ogren told McClatchy News.
It wasn’t until Martin left the Dunkin’ Donuts and took his first sip that he realized his black coffee had something added, Ogren said.
“It was a lugie. It was balled-up spit,” Ogren said. “Normally, he would order a black coffee so there wouldn’t be anything in there at all.”
Martin went inside to confront the manager and cashier, but they denied it, Ogren said. However, surveillance video shows the manager spitting in the coffee, the lawsuit says.
In an email to McClatchy News, a spokeswoman for Dunkin’ wrote that that company does not comment on pending litigation and declined to say whether the manager is still employed by the chain.
“While we are unable to comment on pending litigation, Dunkin’ is committed to treating all guests with dignity and respect,” the spokeswoman wrote in a statement. “All Dunkin’ restaurants are independently owned and operated by individual franchisees, who are independent business owners and are solely responsible for their own employees and the day-to-day operation of their restaurants.”
The manager, Brian Colon, later admitted to spitting in the coffee, according to the lawsuit. He pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after an investigation by the Milwaukee Police Department and was sentenced to four days in jail, court records show.
Victor Harding, another attorney for Martin, told WISN he thinks that the manager spit in the coffee because he’s a police officer, the station reported.
“That’s our belief,” Harding told WISN. “You’re looking to climb into the mind of Mr. Colon, who did it, to see what his intent was. But I think he knew what he was doing.”
Martin underwent “prophylactic measures” and testing for HIV, hepatitis and other infectious diseases to ensure he wasn’t sick, the lawsuit says. He also was prevented from being intimate during this time, according to the lawsuit.
The tests took months, Ogren said.
“He couldn’t engage in any intimate contact with his wife and had to live with anxiety that he could possibly be infected with something,” Ogren said.
This story was originally published December 11, 2019 at 10:55 AM with the headline "Cop knew Dunkin’ Donuts worker spit in coffee at the first sip, Wisconsin lawyer says."