A Texas security guard walked off the job during a live television interview after getting into an argument with his supervisor, who later blamed the attack on the guard as he was trying to stop two carjacking suspects who were stealing his car.
Percy Payne, a Prive Security employee stationed at a private underground parking garage in East Austin, was attacked on June 24 after he witnessed two “young Hispanic males on two electric scooters” trying to break into his vehicle. According to Fox 7 Austin.
As Payne recalled the brutal attack in an interview with the outlet, his manager confronted him and told him he couldn’t speak on camera at work.
“I’m very sorry about what happened to you,” the supervisor began, before reprimanding Payne.
“We have a policy that says you can’t be interviewed while in uniform. If you want to be interviewed as a civilian, you can,” she added.
An argument broke out between the two with cameras rolling, and the director ordered Payne to remove his uniform.
Payne tried to explain to the woman that an interview was the only way she could tell her story, but her boss grew frustrated and blamed the security guards for the assault.
The unidentified supervisor again asked Payne to remove his uniform while complying with the request.
“Was it my fault?” Payne, who had taken off his uniform and put on a Cleveland Browns shirt, asked after being told he had made the decision to touch the suspect.
“Yes, all of them,” said the boss.
Surveillance camera footage obtained by the outlet showed Payne being confronted by two suspects who allegedly entered the garage through a door that had been left open around 9:30 p.m.
He followed the two men downstairs and saw them standing near his car.
“One was at the driver’s door, facing away from me and looking back, and the other was at the passenger door, facing me and keeping watch.”
After spotting Payne, the pair ran towards a security gate and a two-on-one fight ensued between Payne and the suspects.
“Young people tried to run me over multiple times with their scooters and that’s when they started assaulting me,” Payne said.
During the attack, one of the suspects allegedly yelled “get him” before pulling a screwdriver from his pocket and attempting to stab Mr Payne.
“I let them go and immediately pulled out my work cell phone and called 911,” he said.
Payne reportedly told dispatchers that he did not need an ambulance, but that he had been assaulted and asked for police to be called.
“Even though I told her I’d been assaulted, she said, ‘I’m not going to send the cops because I didn’t steal your car,’ so I hung up,” Payne said.
A few minutes later, the guard called 911 again, reached a different operator, and again explained the situation, receiving an apology.
An hour after the assault, a police officer arrived to meet Payne and explain that his case was supposed to be an “urgent case” because police were investigating it as an aggravated assault.
“I don’t think this was taken as seriously as it should have been,” Payne said.
Payne, the father, has already taken a new job with another security company.
“I woke up the next morning and went on Indeed and started scrolling, and I was looking at the medical field and a bunch of other fields, but something kept drawing me back to the security field,” he said.
Michael Cargill, owner of Central Texas Gun Works, told the outlet he was moved by Payne’s story and offered him a job.
“He deserved to be treated better,” Cargill said. “It’s just insane. The fact that he was put in that predicament in the first place, the fact that his boss was blaming him, the fact that his company was blaming him for being a bad person.”
Payne said he is grateful for the new role Cargill has given him.
“Bless him. This is a blessing, so I accept this. This is an opportunity, this is a door, I accept this. It could lead anywhere,” he added.
