A member of staff at the popular fast food chain Papa John's Pizza has been suspended after an alleged homophobic attack at the Hayes branch.

The worker is alleged to have abused two gay men hugging inside a branch of the popular fast food chain.

Among other expletives, the employee calls one of the customers a "gay b******" and hits out and kicks at the pair after ejecting them from the restaurant where they were ordering food, reports the Mirror Online .

The two men - who do not want to be named - videoed the encounter as the incident unfolded at a branch of the chain in Botwell Lane at around 11.30pm on Saturday (December 17).

The man appears to call the customer a "gay b******"

The worker - who is wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the Papa John's logo - can even be heard asking one of the men if he wants to "shove his mouth on [the other man's] c***" as he challenges them to a fight in the street.

The shocking video - which has been emailed by one of the alleged victims in a complaint to the Papa John's head office - was shot on a mobile phone.

One of the alleged victims told Mirror Online he was "devastated" to be subject to such "abuse'"- the kind of which he claims he had never previously encountered - "in 2016".

He said: "He was quite scary. It was really upsetting. I've been very anxious since - constantly worried - I haven't been the subject of abuse before."

Papa John confirmed an "employee has been suspended pending the investigation" into the incident.

The Met Police confirmed a man had been arrested for ABH in connection with the incident.

The alleged victim explained to Mirror Online how he had met his friend at a nearby bus stop in Hayes and they were buying some food to take home with a bottle of wine when the incident unfolded.

The customer said the rant came after he gave his male friend a hug

The 27-year-old recruitment worker said: "My friend told me he had been promoted at work and I gave him a hug when the (worker) said something along the lines of 'we don't want none of that behaviour in here' and 'you're too close for my liking'.

"I said 'don't speak to me like that' and the guy said 'I'll slap you silly' - that's when I started recording."

As the video begins to play the alleged victim can be heard to ask: "What do you mean you are 'going to slap me silly'?"

The man behind the counter can be heard to reply: "Let me tell you something you gay b*****d...

The customer's friend tries to interrupt by telling the worker: "Hey, that's enough..."

The worker tells the friend: "Don't you point that finger at me! Get the hell out of my store!"

Both customers are now asking why: "Because I am gay?" - as the worker repeatedly tells them "get the hell out of my store".

But then his orders turn to threats: "...or I'll break that phone and I will make you eat it."

The man tells the customers to 'get the hell out of his store'

One of the alleged victims asks what is going to happen if they don't leave - but the worker insists "this is my store, I own it".

The two customers can be seen on the video being edged towards the door and pushed out of the store by the worker - apparently aided by a colleague.

One of the victims is still asking: "Why did you call me a gay b*****d?"

As the customers argue with the worker by the entrance to the store he can be seen to kick out at the pair with his foot.

The worker then steps out of the store and as one of the alleged victims asks: "Am I a gay b*****d?" the employee can be heard to reply: "Yeah, you are..."

He repeats this phrase several times as he walks towards the pair - and as one of the alleged victims warns him off camera he will lose his job he replies: "I don't give a s***."

The man follows the two customers out of his shop

The worker then points at one of the men and asks "would you shove his mouth on your c***?"

One of the alleged victims replies: "Yeah he would, and what's that got to do with you?"

The worker can then be seen to lash out at one of the men.

In an apparent invitation to fight, he continues: "Take your coat off, let's do it now" - and, after a further exchange of words, eventually the worker lashes out at the camera lens.

The video ends with the £600 Samsung S7 cameraphone falling to the ground - with the alleged victim claiming "he slapped it out of my hand".

Papa John's have confirmed they are investigating the incident

After the encounter the pair jumped into a taxi and fled to the safety of a nearby Tesco garage where they showed the video to a policeman.

The Metropolitan Police officer has requested a copy of the full video to investigate, the victim said.

Papa Johns confirmed in an email to the victim that they were investigating the incident after he complained.

The chain is understood to operate under a franchise business model.

A spokesman for Papa John's told Mirror Online: "We are disappointed by this incident and have a zero tolerance policy towards any abuse of our customers.

"We will co-operate with the police in their investigation and will consider any appropriate action when this is complete.”

One of the upset victims also said: "It's ridiculous in 2016 that I can walk into a shop and be subject to abuse and homophobia.

"I respect people and I was disrespected. I don't care whether it is a franchise. That person should not be working there discriminating against my sexuality."

Papa John's confirmed on Monday night (December 19) an “employee has been suspended pending the investigation”.

The Metropolitan Police has also confirmed that a man has been arrested for causing actual bodily harm.

A statement from Papa John's said: “We are disappointed by this incident and have a zero tolerance policy towards any abuse of our customers.

“We will co-operate with the police in their investigation and will consider any appropriate action when this is complete."

A statement from the Met said: “Police were on a routine patrol in Hayes Road, Hayes when they were approached by two men at about 11pm on Saturday, December 17 who reported that they had been assaulted earlier that evening.

“The victims said that they were at Papa John's in Botwell Lane, Hayes at around 10.45pm when they were approached by an unknown man who made homophobic comments and assaulted them.

“Police attended Papa John's and arrested a 29-year-old man on suspicion of actual bodily harm at about 12.30am on Sunday, December 18.

“He was taken to a west London police station for questioning.

"He has been bailed pending further enquiries to return on a date in early February.”

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