Boston man charged after assaulting Burger King employee

A Boston man faces charges after he attacked a Burger King employee, punched a customer, then resisted arrest at a nearby MBTA station in East Boston, authorities announced Monday afternoon.

Patrick Donovan, 59, was charged July 1 with assault and battery causing injury to a person over 60 or disabled, assault and battery, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, assault and vandalism, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office said in a news release.

Hayden’s office said the charges stem from an incident that occurred shortly before 10 p.m. on June 30, when Boston police responded to a disturbance call from a Burger King at 1 Maverick Square.

A Burger King employee told officers that after he ordered and received his food, Donovan shouted that he didn’t want it anymore and slammed the napkin holder off the counter. He then lunged at an employee and grabbed her arm, prosecutors said.

Donovan then shoved a customer from behind and punched him in the face three times while calling him racial slurs, the district attorney’s office said.

EMS evaluated the client for “obvious wounds to the forehead,” but the victim refused further treatment, authorities said.

Donovan fled the restaurant after the assaults, and officers tracked him to the nearby MBTA Maverick station, prosecutors said.

“As the officers attempted to detain Donovan inside the station, he struck them with a closed fist but did not communicate,” Hayden’s office said, noting that Donovan directed racial slurs toward the officers. “Donovan was taken into custody after a short struggle.”

While arraigned in the East Boston Division of Boston Municipal Court, Donovan pleaded not guilty and was released on his own recognizance. He was also ordered to stay away from Maverick Square and Burger King, court records show.

He is scheduled to return to court on August 7 for a pretrial hearing, prosecutors said.

Officers obtained security footage of both attacks. Authorities said the incident remains under investigation and could lead to more charges.

“Our workers deserve to be safe where they work and our customers deserve to be safe where they shop or dine, without exception,” Hayden said in a statement. “Furthermore, none of our citizens or first responders should be subjected to racist slurs. These horrific words have no place in Suffolk County or anywhere else in our community.”

Attorney information for Donovan was not immediately available Monday afternoon.