Chef Opens Fire in Restaurant, Killing 1 Employee, Wounding Another Before Shooting Himself

The executive chef of a North Carolina French restaurant is in critical condition after he entered his restaurant Friday morning, shot two employees — one of them fatally — and then turned the gun on himself.

Witnesses said George Colom entered the restaurant Coquette just before 11 a.m. on Friday and fatally shot 26-year-old Jonathan Schaffer and wounded another man.

“We were having our daily meeting before the shift began,” Jonathan Aguilar, 24, told WRAL. “One of our employees had brought in a cake to celebrate a bartender’s birthday. She was cutting the cake, and moments later, I was shot.”

Aguilar said he was shot in the hand.

Raleigh Police said Colom then shot himself.

Schools and businesses in the north Raleigh area were briefly locked down after the shooting.

Colom’s family told WTVD that he was taken off life support on Saturday.

Police have not released any information about a motive for the shooting, other than to say an argument between Colom and Schaffer preceded the gunfire.

Schaffer listed himself on LinkedIn as a manager with Urban Food Group, the owners of Coquette. He had previously worked as a cook and a chef at several other restaurants in North Carolina.

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[Featured image: Jonathan Schaffer/LinkedIn and George Colom/Facebook]