- Islam El Masry, the owner of a food cart in downtown Portland, was arrested on misdemeanor assault charges on June 6. The arrest was made after El Masry allegedly assaulted customer Carlotta Washington.
- In a video taken by Washington, El Masry tells her to "get the f--- away" and hurls a Gatorade bottle at her. A witness said the man sprayed Washington with Sriracha hot sauce as well.
- According to a witness, El Masry yelled at Washington and calling her a "stupid f------ b----" and a racist slur after she tried to pay for her food in change.
- According to the Willamette Week, El Masry was arrested and sent to Multnomah County jail for misdemeanor harassment and assault.
- On Saturday, a group of 15 to 20 people reportedly harassed Gharib Muhammad and his wife, the owners of a different Egyptian food cart in downtown Portland.
On June 6, Portland food cart owner Islam El Masry was arrested on misdemeanor assault charges after allegedly assaulting Carlotta Washington, a black customer who had been attempting to purchase food from him.
According to two witnesses, El Masry called her the N-word and sprayed her with Sriracha hot sauce. In a video taken by Washington, El Masry appears to throw a Gatorade bottle at her, which caused her to drop her phone.
According to witness Amanda Dodge, the alleged assault started when Washington tried to pay El Masry for her food with change.
Dodge told INSIDER that she had already ordered from El Masry's cart, Small Pharoah's, and was waiting in line for her food when she saw Washington, who was next in line, attempt to order food from El Masry.
According to Dodge, Washington had some change on her and tried to pay for her food using a combination of dollar bills and coins.
However, Dodge said that El Masry refused to take the change. "I'm not taking your f------ change," he allegedly said to her. "Get your f------ n----- ass off my step."
Dodge said that Washington responded by telling him not to talk to her that way and she was just trying to pay for her food. But El Masry continued to yell at her, calling her the N-word repeatedly as well as a "stupid f------ b----."
At this point, Washington says she pulled out her phone and started to record a video of El Masry.
In the video, Washington says to El Masry: "Just because you didn't want to take coins, you're calling me out on my name, you're calling me a n-----. What else do you want to call me?"
El Masry shouts at Washington to "get the f--- away" from his cart before appearing to throw a Gatorade bottle at her, knocking her phone on the ground.
As the recording continues, Washington can be heard saying to El Masry, "You don't do that s---!"
In the background, other people can be heard saying, "Dude, that was uncalled for," "That's assault," and "That's wrong!"
"Somebody call the cops," Washington can be heard saying as El Masry continues to shout at her to "get the f--- out from here."
The video ends there, but Dodge told INSIDER that shortly afterward El Masry pulled out a bottle of Sriracha and started spraying Washington with it.
Rachel Good, another witness to the alleged assault, had been getting lunch with her co-workers when she heard people screaming and saw a woman "sobbing and covered in hot sauce."
"There was hot sauce on her neck and shoulders," Good said. "It even got on her face and eyes."
Washington told Willamette Week that the hot sauce "was burning terribly" when it got in her eyes and on her skin.
Good said that a security guard across the street called the City of Portland Police, and three police officers arrived on the scene.
Good, along with several other witnesses, moved Washington away from El Masry's food cart and helped clean her up. "Our priority was taking care of the victim," Good said.
The police officers, once they arrived on the scene, were "really compassionate" with Washington, according to Good. The officers spoke to the victim and witnesses and took down their statements.
Good said that about two and a half hours after the phone call to the police was initially made, El Masry was arrested.
According to the Willamette Week, El Masry was arrested on misdemeanor harassment and assault with a bail set at $4,000.
The witnesses said they were shocked by what they saw.
"I was very shocked by how he responded," Dodge said. "This should be considered a hate crime. She was just an average person in Portland trying to get a meal. That's something you should be allowed to do, whether you're white or black."
According to Good, this incident shows that "hate exists here as well."
"Portland has this reputation of being a progressive bubble," Good told INSIDER. "But racist things happen here, too."
However, Good was pleasantly surprised to see that many people were willing to help Washington and advocate on her behalf. "When you see something like this happening, take the time to do something," she said. "It's important to not turn a blind eye."
Washington told INSIDER that she will be releasing an official statement soon.
When contacted for comment, Washington told INSIDER that the incident has been "really overwhelming" for her. Washington said a friend is going to help her write a statement about what actually happened, which she plans to release in the near future.
Following the alleged assault, a group of people reportedly harassed the owner of a different Egyptian food cart in downtown Portland on Saturday.
According to the Willamette Week, Portland residents have been harassing Gharib Muhammad, the owner of Elmasry Egyptian Halal Food, because they mistakenly believe that he is the same man who had attacked Washington a few days prior.
Muhammad told the Willamette Week that on Saturday, a group of 15 to 20 people holding signs harassed his wife as she was operating the food cart, demanding her to close the business. He also said a man gave him the middle finger and said, "I remember what you did yesterday."
Muhammad told KGW News that he has no connection to El Masry or Small Pharaoh's. Elmasry Egyptian Halal Food is located two blocks away from Small Pharaoh's, where the alleged assault reportedly occurred. While both are Egyptian food carts, they are two different establishments.
Muhammad told KGW News that people are probably confused because his food cart shares a name with the suspect in the alleged attack. He explained that the Arabic word "El Masry" simply means "Egyptian," and said that he has "nothing to do with [Islam] El Masry." He added that he was "shocked" by what allegedly happened to Washington at Small Pharaoh's.
Muhammad said that he has offered Washington a month's worth of free food from his food cart.
Gharib Muhammad, two other witnesses to the alleged assault on June 6, and police officers for the City of Portland Police did not immediately respond to INSIDER's requests for comment.
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