Fort Wayne Tim Hortons Fight Ends in Woman’s Death

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The Fort Wayne Police Department released surveillance video Tuesday of a fatal fight at a Tim Hortons on May 13.

Detectives say 75-year-old Anita Grayson went inside the restaurant to complain about an order and began berating a 17-year-old employee. When a 20-year-old shift leader stepped in and told Grayson to leave, Grayson shoved her and struck her in the nose.

“At that point, the shift lead reacted and moved toward Ms. Grayson while swinging her arms in an attempt to strike her,” Fort Wayne police said in a release. “During the physical altercation, Ms. Grayson grabbed at the shift lead’s face, leaving scratches and knocking off her glasses. Ms. Grayson then grabbed the shift lead by the hair and pulled her to the ground and rolled on top of her. The shift lead can be seen swatting at Grayson’s arm as she is being held by her hair. Two Tim Hortons employees moved in and attempted to separate them but struggled to get the shift lead’s hair out of Grayson’s hand. During the struggle, Ms. Grayson pulled a chunk of hair from the shift lead’s head leaving a raw area on the top of her head.”

Once the fight ended, Grayson sat at a table, lay down on the floor, and became unresponsive. Paramedics rushed her to a local hospital, where she later died.

Police have made no arrests and are still waiting for an autopsy to determine Grayson’s cause of death.

“The Fort Wayne Police Department recognizes that any loss of life is tragic,” the department said in a statement. “When the circumstances surrounding a death are not immediately clear, those circumstances must be thoroughly and professionally investigated.”

Full Video of the Fight | Tim Horton’s Fort Wayne May 13, 2026