A shocking physical altercation unfolded in Vons, Orange County recently when a homeless man attempted to steal two beers, but was caught red-handed, which ended up instigating a heated physical altercation. Not only were employees dragged into the scuffle, but a local Vons customer can be seen attempting to help the staff, too.
The 41-second video begins with a standoff between the homeless man and a Vons employee in an aisle near some plushies. The unhoused man, seen sporting a dark blue Mickey Mouse t-shirt and grey cargo pants, is stood right in front of the worker. While we don’t see the buildup before the footage, it’s alleged later in the incident that the homeless man had overtly stated to the employee that he was just stealing “two f*cking beers.”
“Hey, hey, hey!” the employee yells as he attempts to prevent the man from leaving the premises. Erupting angrily, the homeless man starts to physically assault the worker by punching him several times in the head, and grappling with him. Another employee scrambles to help, with another yelling, “Stop it!“
However, the physical altercation continues to intensify as a customer approaches to give some support the two employees in a bid to calm the situation down, though the homeless man is not giving up without a fight. During the commotion, some bottles from the shelf get knocked over and smashed on the floor. The homeless man even grabs a full bottle of beer, and attempts to throw it at the workers, though thankfully, he narrowly misses. “F*cking a*shole!” shouts a woman, who was nearly hit by the airborne projectile.
While he’s cornered, the homeless person pipes up, shouting, “It’s your sh*t! It’s your sh*t! I’m right, n*gga! I’m right! I’m trying to alleviate this sh*t, b*tch! You wanna be a b*tch? Like I said, I’m stealing sh*t! I’m sending two f*cking beers!” before the clip cuts to an end.
At the time of writing, there are very few details about this specific incident, though the Reddit post does have the ‘Police Activity’ tag, so we can infer that police were called to the scene. Whether the perpetrator was charged is not yet confirmed, however.
As expected, social media users flooded the comments and chimed in with their own thoughts on the chaotic footage. Some users lamented the fact that the employee could get in trouble for attempting to stop the thief, writing, “As someone who works for Vons—Albertsons, I feel bad for that employee. More likely, he will be terminated” with another penning “Its never worth it, not even a little bit. Far too many clerks like to think they are loss prevention and its a problem because sh*t like this can happen and all the clerk needed to was notify a supervisor maintain eye contact and thats about all you can and should do. I get so damn nervous when my co workers do this sh*t.”
Elsewhere, a third commenter found it amusing that the homeless man was wearing a Mickey Mouse t-shirt, expressing, “Lmao he had a Mickey Mouse tshirt on” Lastly, a fourth remarked, “Gee, wonder why he’s homeless lol“
Ultimately, this shocking incident serves as a stark reminder of the growing challenges related to homelessness and mental health in urban communities, while also serving as a warning to store employees who should always remember to be careful when faced with threats from the desperate and the needy.
