Seattle hardware store employee shoves customer out the door after bat “taunt” over mask argument

Jason Rantz/ Twitter screenshot

Social distancing was definitely not high on the list of priorities for an “unhinged” Seattle hardware store worker. He was caught on video while offending a customer and shoving them out the door without ceremony.

The employee didn’t hesitate to argue and throw punches when the argument about wearing a mask heated up, according to The Blaze.

How did it all happen?

Bobby Dixon shared with KOMO-TV that he and a friend went inside the Tweedy and Popp Hardware at Lake City. They wanted to buy a few items they needed on Sunday. Dixon told the station he was wearing a mask, but his friend didn’t have any face cover on.

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The news outlet points out that the signs posted on the store’s front doors warned all customers that face coverings were required.

What happened next?

Dixon said for KOMO that the employees inside the store asked his friend to put a mask on or leave. However, his friend informed them that he was fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The employees kept pushing for the store’s policy to be respected regardless of the vaccine and things went downhill in a matter of seconds.

“It was a match back and forth between them,” Dixon told the station.

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According to the station, Dixon’s friend eventually turned to go outside. In the meantime Dixon headed for the cash register. The cashier reportedly used offensive words. As he was walking out Dixon stopped, turned around, and headed back inside because he wanted to complain about such poor customer service.

“You work in customer service, and if you're going to be rude, I'm going to take your name down and give it to your boss,” Dixon pointed out for the station.

Then the cashier showed up with a bat!

“You're going to hit me with that bat? You taunt me with that bat?” Dixon is heard asking in the video that was recorded on cellphone.

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The bat-wielding employee didn’t stop at that threat. He proceeded to shove Dixon roughly out the door.

“I've never had anybody come at me like that, and it was flight or fight, and I was trying to get out of there, and he kept coming at me,” Dixon recalls.

Jason Rantz from KTTH-AM revealed Dixon’s friend recorded the encounter and how he was treated in the store. As soon as the confrontation ended the employee went back inside, but Dixon and his friend continued to argue with a few other employees.

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A report on the incident was filed with the Seattle police. The detectives said they are doing their best to sort out through the many different versions on what happened. The aggressive employee claimed neither of the two friends had a mask on.

Even though Dixon said he was wearing a mask in the store, in the video he doesn’t have any face covering on. The employee also stated that both men attacked him, but the video only shows the confrontation between him and Dixon.

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“I wasn't threatening, I never made any threats, and neither did my friend. I was just trying to defend myself. That's not customer service, and that's not acceptable, and Ace Hardware needs to handle that,” Dixon said to Rantz.

“It's kind of humiliating because I'm trying to run a business out here, and it's not a good look for a business owner to be involved in something like that, but I want to clear the air,” he concluded about the Seattle incident.

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