A Gloucester County waitress is recovering from injuries after she was assaulted and kidnapped by a group who allegedly did not pay for their meal.

The incident happened at Nifty Fifty’s over the weekend in Washington Township.

“They got their bill. It was time to pay and they fled from the restaurant,” says Police Chief Patrick Gurcsik.

Surveillance videos show that the waitress chased after the party of five to confront them over not paying for their meal.

“On the video we were able to see that the back door of the white Dodge Durango was open. At some point, a victim ended up inside the vehicle and the vehicle took off northbound on State Highway 42,” Gurcsik says.

The chief says that the waitress believes that she was pulled into the suspects’ vehicle as it was moving.

“It was sort of her only option to try and prevent being dragged,” he says.

Police say that the suspects eventually left the waitress on the side of the highway. She was able to run back to the restaurant and called 911. She was taken to the hospital with bruises and a possible concussion.

Police say that the suspects are three men and two women.

“They look like they are in their early 20s, 20-25,” Gurcsik says.

Police say that while this type of situation is rare, they suggest that people do not get involved when someone fails to pay for a meal. Instead, they should try to obtain as much information as possible.

“Try to get a license plate. Obviously try to be able to identify the accused and call 911. We don’t recommend chasing customers in the parking lot because you never know what’s going to happen in the parking lot if someone is cornered or trapped,” Gurcsik says.

Police say the five suspects face various charges, including abduction, robbery, aggravated assault, and possibly kidnapping.