A food truck owner ruined a nearby taco stand’s food with a fire extinguisher in Whittier County, California, according to a now-viral TikTok that captured the incident and several reports. The food truck owner was reportedly upset that the taco stand was in the spot he usually sets his truck up in.
The video was uploaded to TikTok on Saturday by @rosariotijeras332. As of Wednesday the clip had over 5 million views. In the video, a man in a white shirt has a fire extinguisher and is releasing the extinguishing agent on a taco stand’s food. He is accompanied by a man in black, and they walk to another food truck, presumably their own, toward the end of the video.
The text overlay of the clip refers to themselves (in Spanish) as victims of envy and calls the two men featured the owners of the other food truck.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Carlos Plascencia was arrested on Friday “on suspicion of pouring water onto the cooking fires of the Tacos La Guera stand and dousing its wares with a fire extinguisher.” Lt. Todd Barnes of the Norwalk Sheriff’s Station confirmed with the Daily Dot that Plascencia was arrested for felony vandalism for destroying the taco stand’s food. Barnes said Plascencia was arrested at his place of residence and bonded out the following day. The case is reportedly under investigation, Barnes said.
The two food businesses were in competition over a certain location, and Plascencia was reportedly upset that Tacos La Guera set up in his usual spot. The caption of the TikTok video claims that the workers of the taco stand were taken “advantage” of since there is no one to “protect” them.
A later TikTok by @rosariotijeras332 shows all the damaged food at the taco stand. The taco stand was reportedly selling tacos al pastor at the time.
As the Los Angeles Times article points out, al pastor takes a lot of preparation before being served. ““People think they just put meat on the grill, and no, no, there’s so much behind it,” Food influencer Jimmy Borunda told the Los Angeles Times. “It’s hours of work, not minutes. Just throwing out the food alone — es un pecado, it’s a sin!”
After the incident went viral, people on social media rallied in support of Tacos La Guera.
“That was mean. It’s enough out here for everybody. No need to hate on others. What’s for you is for you,” one commenter wrote.
“Just sad! I can’t believe someone would stoop so low! I’m glad no one got hurt,” another commented.
On TikTok, Jesús Morales (@juixxe) started a “Venmo challenge” for the taco stand workers. In just four days, the social media fundraiser raised nearly $15,000, which Morales says is going to be a surprise given directly to the taco stand workers from that night.
The Daily Dot reached out to Jesús Morales and @rosariotijeras332 via TikTok comment.
Source: https://www.dailydot.com/irl/taco-stand-fire-extinguisher-tiktok/