A man was arrested in Arkansas last month for allegedly assaulting a customer and damaging items at Peter’s Bakery in San Jose in an incident that brought wide public attention in December, authorities said.
Eugene Morgan, a 44-year-old resident of San Jose, was arrested March 3 by deputies from the Fort Smith Arkansas Sheriff’s Office after they were called for an alleged trespassing incident. Morgan was already the subject of an arrest warrant connected to the December incident, according to a news release from the San Jose Police Department.
“No matter where you flee, we will find you and hold you accountable for crimes you commit in our city,” San Jose police Chief Paul Joseph said in a statement. “Hiding in Arkansas won’t hide the fact you terrorized a resident, a local business, and a community as a whole. You have now returned to face the consequences.”
The alleged assault occurred on Dec. 17, when Morgan entered the bakery on the 3100 block of Alum Rock Avenue and attempted to sell items to the business, authorities said. After an employee declined to purchase his wares, Morgan became “enraged” and began to damage items in the business.
A female customer attempted to film Morgan’s actions, prompting him to assault her, authorities said. The victim suffered minor injuries, which were treated at the scene by medical personnel.
The incident was caught on security cameras in the bakery and later posted on social media with a plea for the public to help the bakery identify the man. He is seen in the video pushing a cash register and other items off the counter.
Morgan then fled the scene before authorities arrived, police said.
“When someone attacks a local business and a resident, they don’t get to hide. Our officers and detectives identified the suspect, secured a warrant, and worked with law enforcement partners in Arkansas to bring him back to California,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in the release. “We will hold him accountable for the harm he caused, and we will keep protecting the people and small businesses that make San Jose run.”
Morgan was extradited to California on April 9 and booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail on suspicion of felony intimidation of a witness with violence and felony vandalism, authorities said. The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office charged Morgan with those two counts.
Anyone with further information on this incident is asked to contact Detective Lopes #4870 at 4870@sanjoseca.gov or 408-277-4161.