Taco toss puts Fairbanks man in jail
by Joshua Armstrong / jarmstrong@newsminer.com
1 month ago | 66509 views | 88 88 comments | 77 77 recommendations | email to a friend | print
FAIRBANKS — Three tacos cost a Fairbanks man $100 in fines, one day in jail and one year probation.

Warren E. Strickland, 31, of Fairbanks, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct Tuesday for throwing a double-decker taco at a manager of the Taco Bell restaurant on University Avenue.

Strickland said he was upset during the Jan. 14 incident because a taco contained spit after he had been through the drive-thru twice to correct his order.

According to a criminal complaint filed in court, he went into the restaurant and threw the taco at manager Carol Dzimtrowicz, who said it hit her in the face and that she was scared of Strickland. Another employee reported that Strickland threatened to knock him out.

Strickland was arrested at his home driveway, where he admitted throwing the taco, according to the complaint.

Dzimtrowicz said she could not comment. She deferred questions to the ownership company of Alaska Taco Bell Franchises, Denali Foods, which did not return a voice mail.

Strickland said he returned to the drive-thru lane because he had paid for three tacos and received two and that he returned because the new taco wasn’t what he’d ordered.

Then, he said, he found spit in the second newly made taco and went inside to tell a manager.

He claimed Dzimtrowicz accused him of lying and trying to get free food. That’s when he threw the taco that allegedly had been spat upon.

“Unfortunately, I destroyed the evidence (of the spit), or I could have gotten the place shut down,” he said Wednesday.

He feels the criminal complaint misrepresented the incident in ways, such as comparing his dimensions (6 feet 2 inches tall, 250 pounds) to Dzimtrowicz, who is roughly half his size, and making no mention of the spit.

Strickland is barred from any Taco Bell during his year of probation.

He asked during his arraignment Tuesday to be allowed at the College Road Taco Bell, where he said he was treated well after calling a consumer complaint number. He will need a written agreement from the owner to be allowed there.

Contact staff writer Joshua Armstrong at

459-7523.
comments (88)
« Invictus wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 01:28 PM »
My brother worked at a KFC for a summer, just before he shipped off in the Army. That was thirty years ago and he has never set foot in a KFC again. He said unspeakable things occurred in the kitchen. Kids are still doing the same things today.

Grow, kill, and make your own food.
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« CooksFromScratch wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 01:06 PM »
If you MUST patronize "fast food" joints ALWAYS go inside, stand at the counter and WATCH your order being filled. Coffee at the drive up window is probably ok, but it's usually faster to run inside for your order. (And you'll save on gas)
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« jkh86 wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 11:50 AM »
What a town.
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« melissa085 wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 04:45 AM »
I think regardless if the evidence was thrown and destroyed that the health department should pay this establishment a visit and passed or fail the results should be brodcasted. I went to school for culinary arts and have worked in the field. So I have heard plenty of code violations and some made me not want to eat out for years.

I could even tell you up here I have seen some codes being broken in the restaurants I worked in. I can also tell you that we always had warning a good day to 4 hours before an inspection where we would only clean up for the inspection before it would go back to normal.

I'm just saying its not only fast food chains that are shady service sometimes it the smiling waitresses at the sit down restaurants that you need to watch out for.

Oh and I'm going to point out that I no longer work as a cook up here so I admit these places may have changed but with the fact that cooks up here are just moved around from one restaurant to another... yeah its just one problem being moved from one place to another so yeah.
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« Katie! wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 02:22 AM »
This story earned a mention on Friday night's "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon"!
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« Wisechief wrote on Saturday, Jan 23 at 12:09 AM »
The State of Alaska should upgrade their inspections in all the fast food with cameras!

These clowns must be stopped! Convict these criminals who spits in people's food!
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« Doug_in_Salcha wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 10:46 PM »
I'm telling you; I purchased three full meals, hot tea for my wife, and a dessert for my wife at Miguels tonight for a very reasonable price.

The food was excellent. It was served on plates too hot to touch without a knapkin (oh yeah, the food was hot too). The service was incomparable (they checked back with me 3 or 4 times to see how we were doing). We sat on clean seats in a cozy booth with a clean table (and no food scraps on the floor). The restrooms are spotless.

I will not go back to Taco Bell anytime soon; there's no need to take my chances with cold food, missing portions of my order, rude management (much less disgusting things like 'spit' on my food).

Those of you who want to continue going there, be my guest! I've found some place better!
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« hrdharry wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 08:36 PM »
Thats what im talking about clio, seems they go all out to arrest and convict honest hardworking tax paying citizens for dumb mistakes. but crackheads with guns that make a career out of crime, they shy away from.
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« observer907 wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 08:28 PM »
I had something similar happen a few weeks ago at another establishment in Fairbanks. When I got home with one of those Angus burgers, instead of bacon, there was a half-eaten burger on top of my other burger. My first reaction after gagging that I ALMOST bit into it was to THROW it into the dogs dish. You would be surprised at how YOU'D react! I did NOT want to drive all the way back in from NP, so I called, NOT asking for my money back, but to alert the manager that there is something obviously wrong with one of their employees. Had I not been so DISGUSTED, I would have held onto it until my next trip into town the next morning. I'm just saying...
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« observer907 wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 08:23 PM »
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« Clio wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 07:24 PM »
Typical FPD! Send a guy to jail for throwing a taco, but the 4 guys who garrotted me, held me at gunpoint for 25 minutes, shot at me, and robbed me haven't even been brought in for questioning...

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« BrwsrJss wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 07:01 PM »
I am never going back to Airport Way Taco Bell. Grrroooossssss! Even allegations...
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« hrdharry wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 03:28 PM »
shaggamuphin, did you meet a guy named 2 soups while you were in there?
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« akwrench wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 12:58 PM »
good for you shaggamuphin! i would have done the same thing!
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« jnjb73 wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 12:28 PM »
hot ground beef to the face burns.... Wow I have never gotten a HOT anything from Taco Bell othere than a hot temper when the order was USUALLY wrong. Give it a rest jh.
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« lfc21 wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 11:46 AM »
Shaggamuphin

wow do you have a temper. When you get mad at you wife do you hit her? Mr.Strickland , I'm sure some day you will be back in jail for domestic violence. I hope you do not kill you children over C- on a report card.
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« joannaharper wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 11:01 AM »
Ok not posting no more. It's hard to not comment when people keep saying my name and lying...but I will refrain from further posts following this errrrrrr!

Happy blogging and commenting!

JUST ONE THING: Employees may not comment, they have to refer you to the main office. That is any corporate rule for any fast food chain. I would be fired no matter how much brown nosing I do. I worked fast food to put myself through college, and believe me, they do work hard a lot of them. There are just a few idiots that mess it up for everyone, just like every workplace.

Please don't throw anything at any fellow human. Just approach it with a smile and compasion and see how far that gets you! Jail harsh, but hot ground beef to the face burns. Just a thought.
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« YolandaII wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 10:26 AM »
Anyone else out there think/bother to check out the "taco tosser" on Courtview? It puts the salsa on the story.....
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« jnjb73 wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 10:20 AM »
Jeez was this totally blown out of whack or what ? Did the big bad taco give the manager with a bad attitude a black eye or hurt her ?? She as well as Taco Bell "owners" Denali Foods should be embarrased for what happened... As for Carols #1 supporter joannaharper whay are you kissing her butt ? Want a raise ??

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« joannaharper wrote on Friday, Jan 22 at 10:20 AM »
Just to clarify I do NOT work at Taco Bell. I have friends and family that have worked for carol at one point or another, and since they all had a great experiences with her, I thought to defend her, and bring both sides to the story. I just thought people were ganging up on Carol. I hate when people gang up on me and only give one side of the story.

Just my own personal opinion. She isn't my boss or anything not sure how that was deduced lol! That is some super brown nosing. I am my own boss. I am a personal trainer, can not work around fast food, TOO TEMPTING, especially taco bell -YUM! I just hate seeing people judged by people not in their shoes. Try compasion first. It gets me a lot farther than anger ever did.

I also was just saying he would have kept the taco if there was really spit in it. Not that the police would have done anything. I also HATE rude customer service, but I do realize that fast food is very stressful, and it would help us to have more compasion for the employees. I HATE rude anywhere it comes from. I always smile and that seems to work as an employee and customer. Try it! Even if you are super mad, compasion and smiling while I complain has always gotten me free food. Being rude got me rude right back.

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