UPS is investigating one of its drivers after a man says a carrier handed him a makeshift noose during an office delivery, according to Atlanta's WSB-TV.
David Mitchell said part of his job is receiving packages as they come in. He said the driver acted strangely when they first encountered each other. He said it escalated to a point where the driver tied a makeshift noose with packing material in front of him and handed it to him.
“I go pick up, and this is what he made in front of me and handed to me. Signifying a noose. A makeshift noose,” Mitchell said.
As Mitchell held up the noose, he started to get emotional, thinking about his immediate reaction when a co-worker asked what happened between him and a white UPS driver.
“I said, ‘I'm trying to be all right; you won't believe what just occurred,’” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said the driver also shoved boxes in his chest.
WSB-TV contacted UPS about this driver. The company won't release his name, but it released a statement.
"It is under investigation, and we are taking this very seriously. We have met with the customer, and there is nothing more to share since it's still being investigated," the statement read.
The Forsyth County Sheriff's Office has assigned a detective to the case to investigate it as a hate crime.
Mitchell said the driver's anger toward him grew this past month after they first crossed paths in the loading dock area.
“He refused to give me the package to deliver, and I said, ‘I work here.’ Use key card, open the door,” Mitchell said.
He said UPS told him the company reassigned the driver to another route, but he wants to see a harsh punishment.
“They said it's a ‘he said, she said.’ I don't go to work with makeshift nooses in my back pocket,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell said he is worried that the driver could retaliate since he knows where he works.
