A 17-year-old McDonald’s employee was stabbed to death by a teenage co-worker while working on what should have been his day off, according to police and family members.
High schooler Reginald “RJ” Harrell was working a shift at the fast food joint on Louetta Road in Harris County, Texas, Wednesday night, when he got into an altercation with a 16-year-old who also worked at the McDonald’s, who allegedly stabbed him, KHOU reported.
Police rushed to the scene around 11:30 p.m. and found Harrell in the bathroom bleeding from multiple stab wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the outlet.
“He did not have to go out like this. He didn’t have to be murdered. He did not deserve this at all,” his grieving mother, Denisha Dennis, told KHOU.
“I want the kid responsible, I want justice for my son, because I don’t have my son no more. He’s gone. He was only 17. And I can’t talk, I can’t hug him, he can’t say, ‘Ma, I love you’.”
Deputies arrested the 16-year-old — who has not been identified due to his age — and charged him with murder. He was booked at the Harris County Juvenile Detention Center.
It was not immediately clear what led to the violence.
Harris was a senior at Cypress Creek High School and planned on becoming a welder after graduation, according to family members. He wasn’t even supposed to be working the night that he died.
“I would have never thought that the last time he walked out my door to go to work would be the last time that I see him and talk to him,” his sister, Kourtnee Dennis, said.
The McDonald’s was temporarily shut down Thursday morning and a cleanup crew was spotted working inside the restaurant, according to KHOU.
The owner of the McDonald’s, Michael Gutierrez, offered condolences to Harrell’s family.
“We are saddened by this tragedy, and our hearts are with the victim’s loved ones and all those impacted,” he said in a statement.
“Right now, our focus is on the well-being of our restaurant employees, and supporting them as they process these events.”
