A man was arrested after an altercation at Al-Aqsa Restaurant on State Street in Salem.
Jason Kendall, 52, is accused of attacking a restaurant employee with a pipe and telling him to “go back to your country, terrorist,” court documents state.
According to the officer’s report, the victim said Kendall was yelling and screaming, causing a disturbance in the restaurant. The victim reportedly asked Kendall to leave, and he did. But he came back 5 minutes later yelling, “get out of America,” and ” Arab, you need to leave, a**hole.”
The victim said Kendall threw something plastic at him, hitting him in the head, according to court documents. Kendall then came at him with a pipe and allegedly used it to him over the head. The victim said it left a small bump on his head.
After he was arrested, Kendall told the officer he saw a “Saddam Hussein looking guy” and he believed a woman in the restaurant was a slave. He said he went inside to tell her she was “free to leave.”
Kendall said he also saw an “evil totem” with Arabic writing on it. He told police he threw the “totem” at the victim. He said the man in the restaurant had something in his hand under a napkin, which he thought was an ice pick. Kendall said he defended himself by hitting the man in the head with a metal pipe.
Kendall was charged with felony assault and unlawful use of a weapon and misdemeanor intimidation. According to the arresting officer’s statement, the incident is being considered a hate crime.
