Burger King worker shot dead over $100 in NYC

Kristal Bayron-Nieves, who had only been in the job for three weeks, was killed in the early hours of Sunday morning

The scene outside the Harlem Burger King (WCBS)

A 19-year-old girl was shot dead in an East Harlem Burger King over the weekend, by an armed robber who stole just $100 from the cash register.

Kristal Bayron-Nieves was working the late shift as a cashier when the gunman entered, at around 1 am local time. He then pistol-whipped a male customer and punched a female manager in the face, before approaching Ms Bayron-Nieves at the counter, according to the New York Post.

She was new to the role, having started at the chain only three weeks prior. According to the teenager’s mother, she quickly handed over $100 from the drawer, which initially appeared to satisfy the armed robber.

However, the as-yet-unidentified man then turned back around and shot Ms Bayron-Nieves in the chest. She was rushed to the nearby Metropolitan Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

“[Ms Bayron-Nieves] didn’t deserve to be mowed down while working at a Burger King,” a police source told The Daily Mail.

Her family told the New York Post that she had already requested more security as well as shift changes after fearing for her safety when leaving work.

“She is only 19, and she has more than 50 homeless people sleeping in front of the store,” her mother, Kristie Nieves, stated in Spanish through her friend and translator Nathalie Pagan.

Ms Bayron-Nieves had only been in New York for two years, having moved to the city from Puerto Rico with her mother and 14-year-old brother.

Surveillance footage captured the moment of the robbery (NYPD)

Her mother went on to say she felt particularly torn over her daughter’s death after convincing her to continue going to work in spite of the teen’s concerns about working at night. Ms Bayron-Nieves had previously requested day shifts for fear of working overnight.

“Kristal said Friday, ‘I don’t want to go. I’m scared,’’ Nieves claimed.

“I say, ‘You have to go and be responsible.’ At 10 pm I wake her up to go and tell her, ‘You have to go. You have to be responsible. You have to get a better life.’’