Miami restaurant asks public to help identify couple accused of stealing tip jar

The Miami Police Department and employees of a Mexican restaurant in the city’s Edgewater neighborhood are asking for the public’s help identifying a couple accused of stealing a tip jar containing money intended for the kitchen staff.

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Surveillance video from La Potranca Tacos & Cantina on Biscayne Boulevard captured the incident on Aug. 19.

Restaurant employees said the jar contained approximately $80-$100.

The money had a special purpose. Employees said servers had agreed that tips collected from takeout orders would go to the cooks.

But that night, employees say, the money disappeared after a couple came into the restaurant.

Surveillance video shows a woman walking into the restaurant and approaching the counter. Video from another camera appears to show her grabbing the tip jar and attempting to conceal it while looking to her left.

A man can also be seen nearby, appearing to keep watch as the woman takes the jar.

Brisa Briones, regional manager for La Potranca, said she was furious when she reviewed the surveillance footage.

“When I saw the video, I felt angry because people work so hard. They don’t deserve that,” Briones told CBS News Miami.

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Milton Alvarez was working in the kitchen when the incident happened. He said employees were stunned.

“The truth is that we were left speechless when we saw the video,” Alvarez said in Spanish. “It is some extra money we look forward to getting.”

According to Briones, the pair initially entered the restaurant and behaved like regular customers.

“First, they came and they ordered like regular customers, and they left the place,” she said.

Briones said the couple returned. That’s when the restaurant’s surveillance cameras captured the images that employees say show the woman taking the tip jar while the man stood nearby.

Briones said management reported the incident to Miami police.

Employees hope someone will recognize them from the surveillance footage.

Anyone with information about the identities of the two people is encouraged to contact Miami police at 305-579-6111.

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This report was produced by Miami Herald news partner CBS News Miami.