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VIDEO: Salem Restaurant Manager Attacked After Dispute Over Tip

SALEM (CBS) - The manager of Koto Grill and Sushi in Salem said she was attacked after a dispute over a tip. Yan Lin said it was a violent, unprovoked attack that left her shaken.

Lin said this is already a difficult time of year, running a restaurant during a pandemic in peak tourism season. So imagine her surprise when a customer got physical with her.

"I was scared," Lin said.

She said a group of five tourists sent back multiple dishes Saturday night, later asking their server to split the bill four ways, then refused to leave a tip.

Salem Koto
Yan Lin, the manager of Koto in Salem, was attacked by a woman (WBZ-TV)

When Lin intervened and suggested they please tip their server, she said a woman followed her up to the front of the restaurant, grabbed her credit card, and shoved Lin into a wall. Surveillance cameras captured the altercation.

Police responded to the restaurant, but two days later, Lin is still shaken up and sore from the experience and is trying to find the woman in the video.

"The only thing in my mind is, you know, glad it is not my server who get attacked, it's me," Lin said. "I am a strong woman."

The owner said she gave all the surveillance video and information she has to Salem Police.

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