Undocumented worker says boss beat him up for quitting
An undocumented Costa Rican cook quit his job then received a vicious attack allegedly by his boss.
Jorge Cordero, 46, found himself in peril, fended off blows then got knocked unconscious.
“When I woke up, my face looked bad. I don’t remember much,” Cordero said. Cordero’s face showed the after effects with a right eye that glowed a horrifying red color and a deep purple bruise under his bottom eyelid.
Codero says a simple assault complaint was filed against Felix Vindas, 39, this week after the Sunday, October 8 incident at the Anchor Bar & Grill on New York Ave.
Cordero told The Trentonian that Vindas, a fellow Costa Rican, repeatedly cursed him before an assault that included kicks and punches.
“The bar had more than 100 people inside, many of them who had attended a rodeo in Trenton,” Cordero said via an interpreter.
“(Vindas) cursed at me. He said I was not worth anything because I could not keep up with all the orders. I was working by myself. He called me a piece of (crap). I took off my apron and handed it to him. I quit.”
Vindas allegedly followed Cordero toward the back door then unleashed blows to his employee’s face.
Cordero fell unconscious onto the sidewalk.
The pair had an arrangement
An undocumented Costa Rican cook quit his job then received a vicious attack allegedly by his boss.
which allowed Cordero to work as a cook and maintain a residence above the bar.
Cordero previously resided in Connecticut but a good reference landed him in Trenton about 15 months ago.
“Felix picked me up in Connecticut and drove me back to Trenton. I figured we were friends,” Cordero said.
“Yes, this hurts even more because I’ve been beaten up by another Costa Rican, by someone I thought I could trust.”
Vindas appeared to have an upper hand in the relationship as Cordero worked 16 hours for six days per week. He earned $700 per week, even when Vindas demanded his fellow Tico work every day.
“It didn’t matter. Always $700 per week even though I worked 119 hours per week for the last six or seven weeks,” Cordero explained.
Cordero said he always feared Vindas could report him to immigration officials which factored into a strange incident.
Cordero gained consciousness then went upstairs to take a shower. He returned to work in the kitchen.
“I was afraid of having no place to stay, afraid that Felix might report me. I had no place to go,” Cordero explained.
However, several people convinced Cordero he should leave, including a disc jockey working the bar room.
“I don’t remember seeing my face that night but a woman and the DJ said it looked bad. When I did see my face... I couldn’t believe it,” Cordero said.
Friends convinced Cordero to seek medical attention. He arrived at Capital Health Regional Medical Center Wednesday evening.
Cordero said a nurse explained that despite his undocumented status, city laws shielded him from deportation as a victim of a crime.
A police report noted that a city officer recorded an interview with Cordero at the Capital Health facility.
Cordero moved out of the bar apartment. Friends have told him to not reveal his new address.
Cordero said he arrived in the U.S. through Mexico in 2005.
“Straight through the frontier to make money and send home to my family. I work a lot. I have to take care of my kids,” he said.
Cordero has found new employment.
“Scared? Yes,” he confessed. “Felix’s friends called and (asked) me to keep quiet. I just want to work and be left alone.”