SEWARD -- Mimi and John Park, who run Peking Restaurant in downtown Seward, were assaulted by a young man who walked into their restaurant Monday.
Battered and bruised, they opened the restaurant again the very next day.
Shocked customers and friends brought flowers, cards and words of sympathy to the couple known for feeding and caring for generations of local children.
Roger Dwain Waters Jr., 26, whose hometown is unknown, was arrested soon after the Parks showed up at the Seward Police Department at 5: 51 p.m. to report the attack and later pointed him out to the police. He also was charged with assaulting officer Steve DeLand as DeLand attempted to remove him from a police car and for threatening a 14-year old juvenile who happened on the scene.
Mimi Park (Hye Suk Park) said she had been seated in a chair opposite the door of the Fourth Avenue restaurant when a man she didn't know came in. Park said "Hi" and rose but Waters punched her in the eye and continued punching her in the face until he knocked her down. He then continued kicking and stomping on her, she said. Park's face and arms were still badly bruised Wednesday.
Park's husband, John (Sung Koon Park), soon came out of the back of the restaurant and received the same treatment from Waters. Customers fled out the back door. John Park's face, neck and back were bruised, and two of his teeth are loose from a punch in the mouth.
The Parks managed to break free of Waters and flee to their vehicle outside, according to arresting officer Jamie Rouleau in his written statement to the court. Waters followed them outside and banged on their window, yelling at them until the Parks drove off. They went to the police department and then to the Seward Providence emergency room. After they had told their story, they spotted their assailant walking on the road nearby and pointed him out to police.
Officer Rouleau confronted Waters, who threatened to kill Rouleau. But the officer eventually managed to handcuff him and place him in a patrol vehicle. When Rouleau and officer Deland attempted to remove Waters from the back of the patrol vehicle to book him at the Seward Community Jail, however, Waters allegedly resisted and kicked Deland hard in the face. Rouleau said he saw several minor fresh cuts on Waters' fingers and knuckles from the earlier assaults.
Later, at 6:55 p.m., a 14-year-old juvenile told Seward police she'd been walking on Fourth Avenue across the street from the restaurant when she saw Waters at the Parks' vehicle. She said he yelled across the street that he was going to kill her. She was scared and ran to a friend's house, where she was told to call the police.
Waters has a long police record that includes 13 offenses, mostly theft-related but also including one assault and two prior felony convictions, according to court documents. He has been charged with two counts of third-degree assault, with two counts of fourth-degree assault pending, police said. Waters was offered bail for $20,000 if he were released to a third-party custodian.
The wall behind the cash register at Peking Restaurant is covered with photographs of local children whom the Parks have cared for over the years. Customers told how the Parks bring out sippy cups for babies and hold and entertain them so their parents can eat. When children were cold and hungry from being outdoors, they'd come to the Peking to warm up with free hot soup from Mimi Parks.
"Mimi's always taken care of us. She hand-fed my son when he was a baby so that we could eat. My nephews all know them by name and it's just an incredible shame that somebody would come in here and do that to them," said customer Theresa Waldron. "I just think they're the last people that anyone would want to harm."
Waters is currently at Wildwood Correctional Complex in Kenai. A pretrial hearing is set for Oct. 27.