Customer Shot by Employee After Argument Over Delayed Order at Florida Fast-Food Outlet

A McDonald’s in Davenport, Florida, was the scene of a shooting after an argument over a late order. One customer was shot but survived. Authorities have called the incident a “McMess” — a messy McDonald’s disaster.

Tensions start at the drive-through

The incident occurred around 3 a.m on 12 October, when 21-year-old employee Yoan Soto was on duty on the night shift.

Two young men, Peter Story, 19, and Nicholas Jones, 18, came to the drive-thru line to order food. Service was slow due to the pressure of online orders, and the staff had stopped taking new orders.

At that time, Soto told a customer outside, “We’re busy, we can’t take new orders right now.” Immediately after that, the two customers became angry and threatened, “They were going to attack. They weren’t just unhappy, they were indicating violent behavior,” said Sheriff Grady Judd.

After entering the restaurant, a fight broke out

Minutes later, the two young men entered the restaurant and began threatening Soto face-to-face. One of them claimed to have a “switch” and a “30 clip” — a weapon.

CCTV footage shows Soto pulling a gun out of his pocket in self-defense. The store manager stepped in to calm things down, but tensions quickly escalated. At one point, during the scuffle, Soto’s gun discharged and struck Peter Story in the neck.

“It’s fortunate that the shot wasn’t fatal. But when someone pulls a ‘McGun,’ it takes everyone’s McAttention,” Sheriff Judd said.

Employees fled in fear

After the shooting, Soto fled the scene in fear and took the gun and shell casings. He was later arrested by police. He has been charged with “evidence tampering.”

On the other hand, Nicholas Jones and Peter Story were both arrested on charges of “trespassing after warning” and “disorderly conduct.” They were later released on bail.

Legal complications and warnings

“This kind of incident could put not only the employee but also McDonald’s at risk because the weapon was used inside their workplace,” said attorney Idalis Vento. “While Florida has open carry laws, carrying a weapon in the workplace is not always legal. It depends on the employer’s policy.”

According to Sheriff Judd, Soto had the right to defend himself because he was threatened multiple times. “They threatened him from outside the store, and then they tried to attack him inside. Soto felt a real sense of fear. But we wouldn’t advise anyone to fight back in that situation.”

Florida’s Open Carry Law Confusion

On the other hand, just days before this incident, on September 25, Florida enacted an “open carry” law, which brought about major changes to the state’s gun laws.

The new law now allows anyone to openly carry a legally owned firearm. A recent court ruling declared the previous law unconstitutional, which recognized the right to openly carry a weapon as part of the Second Amendment. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier declared the decision “state law” and ordered law enforcement agencies not to arrest legal gun owners.

However, the law does not mean that anyone can carry a gun anywhere. The court ruling noted that “open carry” is not unlimited and must be subject to reasonable controls.

As a result, there has been some ambiguity between the court’s decision and existing law for some time.

The incident between these three teens at a McDonald’s in Florida, just weeks after the “open carry” decision, is a reminder of how uncertain the environment can be regarding open firearms.

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