People News

Forest Whitaker humiliated by deli

Feb 16, 2013, 20:01 GMT

Forest Whitaker

Forest Whitaker has blasted a New York deli for accusing him of stealing.

The furious Oscar winning actor claims his human rights were violated after he was wrongly accused of stealing at the Milano Market on the Upper East Side and searched in public.

The 51-year-old 'The Last King of Scotland' star told gossip website TMZ.com that he was humiliated after he was stopped by a deli employee and accused of stealing an item from the shelf. He was then searched in full view of other customers but the employee quickly discovered he hadn't taken anything.

A spokesperson for the actor said: 'This was an upsetting incident given the fact that Forest did nothing more than walk into the deli. What is most unfortunate about this situation is the inappropriate way store employees are treating patrons of their establishment.

'Frisking individuals without proof/evidence is a violation of rights. Forest did not call the authorities at the request of the worker who was in fear of losing his employment. Forest asked that, in the future, the store change their behavior and treat the public in a fair and just manner.'

An eyewitness said they were shocked to see the actor being treated like a common criminal.

A spokesperson for the deli declined to comment.