A MUM was left horrified after she was allegedly “punched in the neck” and her son was “smashed into a fence” by queue jumpers.
Emma Rosall, 44, claims she was assaulted as they waited for the Nemesis Reborn ride at Alton Towers on July 2.
A mum was allegedly punched in the queue for Nemesis at Alton TowersAFP – Getty
Paul TongeThe scuffle reportedly started when queue jumpers tried to cut in line[/caption]
AlamyThe family were left upset by the lack of security at the park[/caption]
The off-duty police officer had taken her son, 13, and 15-year-old daughter to the park for a fun day out at the Stoke-on-Trent theme park.
However the family was left shaken by their experience.
The altercation kicked off after staff made tannoy announcements warning queue jumpers they were being watched and wouldn’t be allowed on rides.
Emma said she saw a man behind her with a bottle of water trying to get past, claiming it was for a medical emergency.
She didn’t buy it, and refused to move aside, causing the man to become allegedly aggressive.
Emma was left stunned when he suddenly lashed out, striking her and then grabbing her son.
“Next thing I knew, he punched me in the back of the neck,” Emma said.
“Then he tried to barge me, grabbed my son and smashed him into the fence.”
Emma says no security arrived despite, what she says, were threats and intimidating behaviour.
She said another man from the same group appeared shortly after, and the two of them remained in the queue beside her family for a frightening 40 minutes after the ordeal.
Emma added: “I could hear him on the phone to his mates, he described what I was wearing to them.”
They were reportedly making threatening comments about what they’d do once the mum got off the ride.
Staff were informed, but the disbelieved mum says she was simply asked to wait for security to show up.
After deciding to leave the line, she filed a report with customer services and was given a reference number.
She says no one offered immediate help, and the experience left her son visibly distressed.
To add insult to injury, she said Alton Towers later offered her discounted tickets for another visit as a “gesture of goodwill.”
The off-duty cop slammed the £25 discount offer, turning it down, and said she wouldn’t feel safe returning anyway.
“We weren’t met with a pleasant experience – just a long drive home in the heat,” she said. “My son was petrified.”
She added that after the money and effort it took to get there, she felt completely let down.
Emma believes Alton Towers failed to respond quickly enough and didn’t protect guests from aggressive visitors.
She says the incident has put her off going back entirely, especially knowing the man walked off without consequence.
Emma said she expected better crowd control and support from such a high-profile venue.
Staffordshire Police have confirmed they were notified about the July 2 incident and are now looking into it.
A police spokesperson said: “At around 2pm on Wednesday 2 July, a woman and teenage boy were assaulted and then threatened by two men.
“They were all in a queue for the Nemesis ride.
“The woman was hit in the back, whilst the boy was pushed against a metal fence.”
The Sun has reached out to Alton Towers for a comment.
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