Santa Clarita business owner redirects phone number to critic following viral backlash

Francesca Ortega, a cleaning business owner in Santa Clarita, California, has faced significant backlash after a viral video showed her confronting a street taco vendor. In the footage, Ortega referred to the vendor as a “stinky old woman” and threatened to call immigration authorities.

Following the incident, Ortega’s business was targeted by a wave of one-star reviews. Ortega claimed that the negative attention from what she described as “insane horrible Latino people” ruined the livelihood she had built over ten years. She also reported receiving threats that made her afraid to appear in public.

In an act of retaliation, Ortega changed her official business phone number on her Google listing to the phone number of Ricardo Morales, a critic who had spoken out against her online. Morales reported receiving hostile calls and messages from individuals across the country, describing the move as “extremely vindictive.”