Coronavirus

Md. Ice Cream Shop Employees Say Couple Violently Attacked Them Over Mask Policy

Anne Arundel County police are searching for a man and a woman accused of attacking employees at a Cold Stone Creamery shop

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Two women in Maryland say they were attacked while working at an ice cream shop because they asked two customers to wear masks.

Nythia Davis and her friend McKeniva drove to work Saturday at a Cold Stone Creamery ice cream shop in Edgewater.

The trouble started when a man and woman walked in about 7:30 p.m., passing a sign on the business’ entrance clearly reading, “no mask, no service.”

A sign in front of the Cold Stone Creamery shop in Edgewater, Maryland, asks customers to wear masks.

Nythia and McKeniva tell News4 they asked the woman to properly wear the mask that was around her neck.

“Her guy that she was with got upset for us asking her to pull her mask up and when we asked them to leave the store because she refused to wear the mask,” McKeniva said.

Nythia and McKeniva say they told the couple they would not serve them ice cream if they didn’t properly wear a mask.

That’s when they say the couple started attacking and punching them.

“He got very violent and I mean it just escalated really quickly,” Nythia said.

“I was scared and I was hitting him back … I had to defend myself,” McKeniva said.

The suspects sped off in a silver Nissan Altima. Anne Arundel police are searching for both of them.

Now, Mckeniva and Nythia have swollen faces and broken bones. Nythia will need eye surgery.

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that wearing a face mask can protect the wearer as well as others from the spread of COVID-19. The agency has previously stated that wearing masks may help prevent people who have COVID-19 from spreading the virus to others who may be nearby.

“I’m sad that I’m in this pandemic and people still don’t realize that they should wear their mask so we that we can overcome this pandemic,” Nythia said.

Nythia says she is hurt and angry that someone would do this.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan’s Executive Order requires everyone over the age of five to wear face coverings in the public spaces of all facilities and businesses.

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