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A 32-year-old former Taco Bell executive was charged Tuesday with misdemeanor assault and battery in connection with an alleged attack on an Uber driver in Costa Mesa.
Benjamin Allen Golden of Newport Beach was also charged with misdemeanor battery on a public transit employee with injury and assault on public transportation property, according to Roxi Fyad of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
Golden, who is out of custody, was scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 17. He faces up to a year in jail or a $10,000 fine if convicted. At the hearing, prosecutors will ask that bail be set at $20,000 bail.
The alleged assault, which was captured on a dashboard-camera video, has gotten widespread news coverage.
The alleged assault happened about 8:10 p.m. Friday in the 1800 block of Newport Boulevard, according to Costa Mesa police.
The driver, Edward Caban, is seen being struck several times in the video but he did not need medical treatment, said Costa Mesa police Lt. Greg Scott.
Golden, who has since lost his job in the marketing department of Taco Bell, called for an Uber driver to pick him up from a Newport Beach bar Friday night, Scott said.
Golden struggled to tell the driver where he wanted to go, so the driver eventually stopped in a parking lot at 1835 Newport Boulevard in Costa Mesa and told him to get out, Scott said.
Golden “punched and slapped the side of the driver’s face,” Scott said.
On the video, Golden can be seen in the back seat of the Uber car with the door open, but he leans forward and repeatedly hits the driver in the head, then grabs him by the hair and tries to slam his head into the driver’s-side door window.
The driver, acting in self-defense, pepper-sprayed Golden, Scott said.
According to Taco Bell, Golden has been fired over the attack.
“Given the behavior of the individual, it is clear he can no longer work for us,” according to the company. “We have also offered and encouraged him to seek professional help.”
—City News Service
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