A Walmart store was the scene of a violent brawl over the alleged theft of a $7 T-shirt.
In the violent incident captured on cell phone video by a customer, a co-ed punching-and-kicking melee erupted in Charlotte, North Carolina, when two Walmart loss prevention officers (i.e., store security) reportedly tried to stop a teen from shoplifting, and others jumped in.
See the NSFW (for language) footage embedded below.
A woman who may have been the person filming the fracas that started at the store entrance/exit area can be heard saying “somebody call the police, please.”
After the confrontation dies down, possibly the same woman wonders “what the f*** just happened? I’ve never seen anything like that in all my damn life…”
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police confirmed that fight at the discount retailer was prompted by the shirt with a $7 price tag, NBC Charlotte affiliate WCNC reported.
Cops have arrested a 14-year-old male on charges of assault, WSOC, Channel 9 in Charlotte, added. The investigation is ongoing, and store management indicated that it would be beefing up security.
One person (presumably the Walmart worker who was bleeding from the eye and face in the video) received medical treatment at a local hospital.
This is unfortunately not the first time that things got wild at Walmart recently. In an incident that made national headlines over the summer, two Indiana women, one of whom was assisted by her six-year-old son, got into a violent altercation in the Walmart shampoo aisle. In a separate encounter, a brawl broke out when a large man wearing track pants appeared to be assisting a police officer in taking a non-compliant woman into custody outside a Columbus, Ohio, Walmart.
Bystanders filmed both incidents which made their way to social media.
The retail chain has apparently established a strict protocol for dealing with potential shoplifters. For example, a Walmart security guard was fired in November 2014 for reportedly using too much force in taking down an alleged shoplifter in a way that countered company policy. In February 2014, a Walmart manager was terminated for gross misconduct after subduing an alleged shoplifter across the street from the store, in violation of corporate policy banning pursuits outside the immediate vicinity of the premises.
This past June, a Walmart security guard in Georgia bravely tackled an alleged shoplifter who reportedly fired one round with a handgun.
Walmart operates about 4,500 stores in the U.S. and approximately 6,500 overseas, which would suggest that a full-on Walmart brawl is a rare occurrence.
[Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images News]
Walmart Brawl Breaks Out Over $7 T-Shirt [Video] is an article from: The Inquisitr News