An elderly man in his eighties was allegedly knocked to the ground by a supermarket employee during a dispute over a discounted cake price, leaving him injured on the floor of a busy Coles store in Sydney — with the supermarket giant now investigating the incident.
The man had returned to the Coles Broadway store in inner-city Sydney on Monday after discovering he had been charged full price for a cake that was advertised at a reduced rate. According to a witness who spoke to 7news.com.au, the customer approached a male employee to request a refund but was allegedly told to “go away” and that nothing could be done. “I just want the discount. Can you refund me?” the elderly man asked.
The witness said the dispute continued for between five and ten minutes before they heard a commotion and saw the elderly man fall heavily to the ground. Footage captured in the aftermath showed the unidentified customer lying on the supermarket floor while a Coles worker stood nearby and other staff rushed to assist. Shocked bystanders looked on as the witness went to help the injured man, who had blood on his hand from a minor cut. The elderly customer told the witness he “didn’t feel very good” and appeared to be in significant pain, suggesting he may need an X-ray.
The witness claimed the staff member allegedly involved walked away from the scene immediately after the incident.
Coles confirmed it was “reviewing the circumstances” of what took place. No further details about the outcome of the internal review or the condition of the injured man have been made public.
