Alex Nelson {BSO}
A former Pollo Tropical employee has been charged with attempted murder following allegations that he stabbed a co-worker.
According to Plantation Police Department records, on August 16, officers responded to an emergency call from the Pollo Tropical located at 50 North University Drive in which a manager reported that an employee had stabbed another employee inside the restaurant.
The suspect, identified as Alex Nelson, 32, of Margate, had fled the scene before police arrived.
Upon arrival, officers found the victim in the kitchen area near the office with a stab wound to the left side of his back. Once stabilized, the victim was transported to Broward Health Medical Center for further treatment while officers began their search for Nelson.
According to the victim’s statement, the altercation began as a verbal argument over work responsibilities. It escalated when Nelson followed the victim into the office, where he closed the door and assaulted the victim, first by punching and attempting to choke him.
The victim told investigators that he managed to exit the office, but Nelson grabbed a chef’s knife and stabbed him in the back, opening a wound approximately three to four inches wide.
Officers at the scene recovered the knife, a nine-inch chef’s knife with about two inches of blood on the tip, in the cleaning area near the office. Blood was also found in the vicinity of the shelving area and the back-office area, where the victim was found.
Witnesses at the scene provided statements to the police, with one stating that they overheard the verbal argument between Nelson and the victim and saw the victim with the knife in his back. Another witness in the kitchen observed Nelson stabbing the victim.
Surveillance footage from Pollo Tropical corroborated the victim’s and witnesses’ accounts. The footage shows Nelson and the victim entering the office, and later, Nelson is seen grabbing an object with his left hand and attacking the victim, leading to a physical struggle during which Nelson puts the victim in a headlock.
Records show the video shows the victim attempts to leave the office twice but is pulled back by Nelson. The footage then shows Nelson retrieving a knife and making slashing motions toward the victim, during which the stabbing likely occurred.
The victim was eventually able to get the knife away from Nelson, who then gathered some items and fled the scene.
On August 18, Nelson was apprehended and taken into custody by the Coconut Creek Police Department near the 5100 block of West Hillsboro Boulevard.
He was transported to the Broward County Main Jail, where he is being held without bond as he faces charges related to the stabbing.
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