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Restaurant owner posts CCTV of family who allegedly fled without paying RM531 bill
🇲🇾 Malaysia /Crime & Justice

Restaurant owner posts CCTV of family who allegedly fled without paying RM531 bill

From Utusan Malaysia · () Malay

Translated from Malay, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A restaurant owner in Washington posted CCTV images of a family who allegedly fled without paying a $130 (RM531) bill.
  • Instead of contacting the police, the owner sought community help via Facebook to identify the family.
  • The owner cited a previous negative experience with police inaction on a similar incident as the reason for handling this case directly.

A restaurant owner in Washington state has taken to social media after a family allegedly dined and dashed, leaving behind an unpaid bill of $130 (RM531).

Zoey Aldahash, owner of Sweet Zoey, a Mediterranean food establishment in Casper, shared closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage on the restaurant's Facebook page. She appealed to local residents for assistance in identifying the four individuals who allegedly ordered a variety of appetizers, drinks, main courses, and desserts during a lunch service in May.

They ate everything, from appetizers, drinks, dessert to the main course. Then, the four of them stood up at the same time, walked to the door, and as soon as the door opened, they ran to the car.

— Zoey AldahashThe restaurant owner describes the alleged dine-and-dash incident.

"They ate everything, from appetizers, drinks, dessert to the main course," Aldahash told Cowboy State Daily. "Then, the four of them stood up at the same time, walked to the door, and as soon as the door opened, they ran to the car."

As a small local restaurant, this has a huge impact on us. The food isn't just 'regular food'; it involves labor, ingredients, bills, and the sweat of our team.

— Zoey AldahashThe owner explains the financial and emotional toll of unpaid bills on her business.

Aldahash opted not to involve the police, explaining that a previous incident involving five customers who left without paying resulted in no action from law enforcement. "Based on my previous experience, contacting the police did not yield any results. No assistance was provided, which is why I did not contact the police for this second incident," she stated.

She expressed that such incidents significantly impact small, local restaurants. "As a small local restaurant, this has a huge impact on us. The food isn't just 'regular food'; it involves labor, ingredients, bills, and the sweat of our team," Aldahash wrote on Facebook. She also mentioned that she remains open to the possibility that the family might have made a mistake.

Based on my previous experience, contacting the police did not yield any results. No assistance was provided, which is why I did not contact the police for this second incident.

— Zoey AldahashThe owner explains her decision to use social media instead of filing a police report due to past experiences.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Utusan Malaysia in Malay. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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