A sadistic part of me finds morbid amusement at reading about the tyranny and carnage that occasionally takes place during each year’s Black Fridays. As unfortunate as it is that the worst stories that emerge from Black Fridays typically include death, I can’t help but be astonished at some of the lengths people will sometimes go to in order to get their grubby hands on particular doorbuster items.
I saw this story of a man getting essentially brutalized to death at Walmart, and was kind of half-surprised, half-not surprised at the fact that it led to an AJC link, meaning the incident took place in the greater Metro Atlanta area. I’m never really surprised when some of the worst things happen in Atlanta, because that’s kind of how I perceive this place sometimes.
The worst part about this whole thing is that in the end, it was over nothing more than two DVD players. I bought a DVD player for someone on Black Friday, online however, and it cost me $30. Blu-Ray players are the real rage, and it led to the devaluation of DVD players to where reputable brands are reduced to just $30. But this guy saw the need to attempt to hoist two DVD players, and not only was he caught, he was ultimately choked out, and then sat on by three people. Details are sketchy and it’s unclear the specific physical natures of all parties involved, but one of them was a “private security” operative, meaning a rent-a-cop. Most rent-a-cops in Atlanta are essentially fat guys who can’t cut it at real cops, but are still physically imposing enough to where they’re put into official-looking security gear, and appear to be respectable enforcement.
But basically, rent-a-cop and two Walmart employees followed the thief in the parking lot and confronted him, which resulted in an altercation, which resulted in the thief getting choked out. And while incapacitated on the ground, the three enforcers somehow saw it fit to sit on him until the proper authorities arrived, where upon arrival of the real cops, when they tried to apprehend the perp, they discovered that he was dead. He didn’t just get owned, but he got owned to death.
I can’t say I feel bad for the guy, because he stole, and frankly petty crime can only lead to bigger and badder crimes, so it’s like stopping the whole chain of degradation at the root, but what I get out of this is that it’s simply not worth stealing from Walmart, because you could end up getting sat on, until you’re dead, for your crimes. Let that be a lesson, perps.
