Woman crashes car into Canoga Park taco shop, a week after vandalizing their catering truck
By Matthew Rodriguez
Police arrested a woman for intentionally crashing a car into a Canoga Park taco shop Friday night.
The driver drove straight through the storefront of Taco Reyes near the intersection of Topanga Canyon Boulevard and Saticoy Street. After destroying the storefront, she continued all the way into the dining area and resumed her destructive rampage. A video shows the driver repeatedly ramming a wall shared with an adjacent bar.
Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department arrested her shortly after the ordeal. Police booked her for felony vandalism and may add an assault with a deadly weapon charge since people were inside the restaurant when she rammed through the building.
Investigators said she allegedly vandalized a Taco Reyes catering truck last week in Reseda.
It’s unclear if anyone was injured.
On Saturday, a member of the Taco Reyes ownership team told KCAL News that the woman who crashed into the restaurant was a summer employee from four years ago, who still has several family members that still work at the location, including her mother who has worked there more more than eight years.
They believe that the woman has been struggling with mental health issues and recalled her as a “sweet and respectful young lady” who left the restaurant on good terms to pursue other employment opportunities.
Woman who rammed SUV into Canoga Park taco restaurant is former employee, owner’s family says
According to the owner’s daughter Antonia Reyes, the woman previously worked for the restaurant, though it’s unclear why she’s no longer an employee.
CANOGA PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A woman who police say intentionally smashed her car into a taco restaurant in Canoga Park is a former employee, according to the owner’s family.
The rampage happened around 7:30 p.m. Friday at Tacos Reyes restaurant near Saticoy Street and Topanga Canyon Boulevard.
Bystander video showed the car repeatedly backing up and going forward, destroying everything inside the business. Police told Eyewitness News that officers saw the woman continuously backing into the building and saw her ram into it.
According to the owner’s daughter Antonia Reyes, the woman previously worked at the restaurant, though it’s unclear why she’s no longer an employee.
“Even when she left four years ago, it wasn’t on bad terms. It was on really good terms,” said Reyes. “Her mom still works with us. She’s been working with us … maybe 8+ years. So, we do have so much love for the family. This is an unfortunate situation that happened and our heart breaks to her.”
The woman, who was not immediately identified, was previously arrested for vandalizing one of the restaurant’s catering trucks, according to police.
Bailey Thompson was working next door at a bar and quickly realized the danger of what was happening. She rushed to tell her customers and co-workers to get out.
“She just was reversing and slamming into all the different walls,” Thompson said. “So we share a wall with them, so she started slamming into our wall.”
People flagged down police officers on patrol in the area. They surrounded the woman and then fired non-lethal rounds before taking her into custody. She’s now facing felony vandalism charges.
No injuries were reported. The incident remains under investigation.
The restaurant will be closed until further notice as crews continue their clean-up efforts.
