VIDEO: Suspect Arrested After Brawl with Walmart Shopper

Police officers arrested a 29-year-old suspect at a Walmart in Federal Way, Washington, on Tuesday following an incident with a shopper.

Police told Q13 News the altercation began in the parking lot when the suspect allegedly hit a parked car but did not acknowledge it, then went into the store.

“Further investigation revealed [the suspect] had entered the business and was attempting to shoplift when confronted by store employees,” Cmdr. Kurt Schwan of the Federal Way Police Department said.

“[The suspect] allegedly threatened to assault anyone who touched him and that is when a 21-year-old male community member stepped in and confronted [him]. A physical altercation ensued,” he continued.

In cell phone video of the incident, an employee is seen walking beside the suspect, who is wearing a black shirt, after he allegedly tried to shoplift.

Moments later, a shopper in a white shirt confronted the suspect, who dropped what he was holding and appeared to get ready to fight the man.

When the suspect picked up the item, the shopper appeared to kick it out of his hand and took several swings at him before wrestling the suspect to the floor.

A security guard approached a few seconds later, and the man in the white shirt stood up and moved out of the way. The suspect then walked outside, where police were waiting to arrest him.

The 21-year-old shopper suffered a cut on his hand, according to authorities.

The suspect was later booked for DUI, hit and run, and attempted theft, the Q13 article read.

“Shoplifting remains one of the most frequent crimes committed by adults and juveniles with 1 in 4 youth admitting to having shoplifted before the ages of 12-16,” the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention’s (NASP) website states:

The estimated 27 million shoplifting offenders and the cost of their repeat offenses are a daily drain on criminal justice and retail resources alike. Since community response to shoplifting is often inconsistent and unclear, shoplifting continues to escalate putting store associates, customers and communities at risk.

The organization said about 1 in 11 Americans shoplift, and “79% of criminal justice professionals surveyed state that shoplifting is a gateway to more costly and violent crime.”

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