A man who entered a southwest Atlanta dollar store without his protective face mask said an employee tried to force him from the store at gunpoint.
The customer said the employee hit him over the head with the gun before he left the store, according to a police report obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The violent incident happened Tuesday at a Family Dollar on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive near Fairburn Road.
The victim was bleeding from his head when Atlanta police officers arrived shortly after noon.
“(He) advised that while he was shopping, he was challenged immediately about his lack of face covering by a male employee,” an officer said in the report. While the employee has been identified, the AJC is not naming him because he has not been charged.
The victim told police the employee “drew a small black firearm from his waistband, attempted to push him out of the store and eventually struck him in the back of his head,” according to the report.
The man was treated for his head injury at the scene. According to police, video surveillance footage viewed by the investigating officer appeared to show the employee pull out a gun, but the officer could not see if he hit the victim with it.
“The case is still under investigation,” police spokesman Officer Steve Avery said Thursday.
— Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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