Illinois woman attacked man in Panera Bread for wearing Palestine sweatshirt, police say

Alexandra Szustakiewicz, 64, of Darien, Illinois, was charged with two counts of hate crime and one count of disorderly conduct, officials said.

An Illinois woman was charged with hate crimes after she attacked a man for wearing a sweatshirt with the word “Palestine” written on it at a suburban Chicago Panera Bread, prosecutors and officials said.

Alexandra Szustakiewicz, 64, of Darien, Illinois, was charged with two counts of hate crime and one count of disorderly conduct, DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin and Downers Grove Chief of Police Michael DeVries announced in a statement Monday. The charges stem from an incident Saturday at a Panera Bread in Downers Grove, a village about 23 miles southwest of downtown Chicago.

Downers Grove police said Szustakiewicz was at Panera Bread shortly before noon, local time, on Saturday when she “confronted and yelled expletives at a man” who was wearing a sweatshirt with the word “Palestine” written on it. Szustakiewicz then allegedly attempted to hit a cell phone out of the hands of a woman who was…

 

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Article URL : https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/11/18/illinois-woman-hate-crimes-panera-bread/76415432007/?tbref=hp