Posted on 04/16/2015 5:01:58 AM PDT by HomerBohn
For the second time in eight months, an unruly teen mob has been caught on video attacking a defenseless victim, stirring outrage in Memphis and beyond.
The first incident happened Sept. 6, when a large mob of teens ran through a parking lot outside the Kroger grocery store in Poplar Plaza. The mob assaulted at least three people in a brutal attack that attracted negative attention across the country after the cellphone video spread across social media.
The latest incident happened around 4:20 p.m. Friday at the BP convenience store at the corner of Poplar and Cleveland.
Orrden Williams, 35, stopped to use the store's ATM while his girlfriend and two boys -- 4 months and 2 years old -- waited in the Dodge Caliber parked outside.
Inside the store, an older woman said she was afraid to go outside after she noticed a "large gathering of juveniles" massing in the parking lot, according to the police report. Williams escorted the unidentified woman outside.
"I can't let no woman go out there and deal with that. They were jumping up and down in front of the car, throwing gang signs. They were going to do something," Williams said during an interview Tuesday.
As they approached the woman's SUV, Williams yelled to the crowd to back off. That seemed to enrage the mob, as several boys converged on Williams and the woman. She managed to get in her car as Williams continued yelling at the mob. That's when punches flew, with one boy striking Williams in the back of the head and another taking a wild swing.
"Once I got there, I told them, 'Really, y'all not gonna move? You gonna stay right here?' They acted offended, and that's when the guy came up and sucker-punched me," Williams said.
Williams conceded that he might have incited the crowd, but believes the youths were ready to react anyway.
"When you look at the video, you see them starting to creep up behind me. You see them starting to get in position and stuff. They had their mind set," he said. "But when I said something, that did kick it off."
After the first punches, Williams ducked and ran to the store as the mob -- moving almost like an angry flock of birds -- rapidly descended on the door.
However, store employee Munib Ahmed had locked the doors to keep the mob out. In the video, Williams can be seen pulling on the doors with no luck.
"He held the door so I couldn't come in," Williams said. "He was willing to watch me get beat to death for helping a woman get to her car."
FOX13 News, WHBQ FOX 13
Ahmed, however, said it happened too fast for him to unlock the door.
"It was quick, maybe 10 seconds. How are you going to do that? He tried to get in, but it was locked. He got in his car," Ahmed said. "When everybody running to the store, we lock it up. When they come inside, they break the store."
Williams managed to reach the car, although the mob -- virtually all boys, although at least two girls can be seen in the video -- continued to assault him as he ran. As Williams' girlfriend backed up to flee, youths kicked and dented the car.
(Watch racial attack at link)
FOX13 News, WHBQ FOX 13
Ahmed, however, said it happened too fast for him to unlock the door.
"It was quick, maybe 10 seconds. How are you going to do that? He tried to get in, but it was locked. He got in his car," Ahmed said. "When everybody running to the store, we lock it up. When they come inside, they break the store."
Williams managed to reach the car, although the mob -- virtually all boys, although at least two girls can be seen in the video -- continued to assault him as he ran. As Williams' girlfriend backed up to flee, youths kicked and dented the car.
(Watch instructional video at link to prepare for potential racial attacks)
The mob then dispersed, although many of the teens can be seen laughing, looking at the recordings they made on their cellphones.
Williams told police the mob came from the nearby Northwest Prep Academy, an alternative school for students overage for their grade. Williams suffered several cuts and bruises to his left eye, his right chest and shoulder and his back. No arrests have been made.
"Because this incident occurred off-campus, (Memphis police) are handling the investigation. However, the district is cooperating with officers on their investigation," Shelby County Schools spokesman Christian Ross said.
This isn't the first time a teen mob has attacked someone at that convenience store. In 2011, two 16-year-olds, part of a large mob, were charged with assault and vandalism after they jumped a TV news cameraman who was filming in the parking lot. Mike Moore was hospitalized after the attack.
In last year's incident in the Kroger parking lot, 10 juveniles were ultimately charged. Eight of those admitted their involvement and were placed on diversion. Two other teens, whose records disqualified them from the program, were placed with the Department of Children's Services.
The only adult suspect in the attack, Raheem Richardson, 19, has been charged with aggravated riot and aggravated assault.
>>You would bet your life that none of the teens would respond to your sword cane with a gun? If it’s multiple-on-one, I would open fire, or at least have a gun in the other hand if I drew a sword.
It gives you more options. Options are good. Edged weapons are good in a scrum. That’s why I carry an automatic knife along with a gun. Plus, the knife or cane can be legally carried in more places than a gun. Remember that the shoot is not the end of your problems. Just ask George Zimmerman. If he had just gutted Trayvon, the story would have been considerably different.
Definitely good vs. evil.
He (the victim) was also Black. He was also carrying and chose not to use his weapon, otherwise some mothers might have had to pay attention to their kids’ behavior for a change. I wonder why this took so long to go national.
The only adult suspect in the attack, Raheem Richardson, 19, has been charged with aggravated riot and aggravated assault.
You'd think a ninth grader would know better than to act like that.
Meet my little friend.
They probably considered their victim to be an oreo or uncle Tom.
Problem is that if he’d shown the holster/weapon, the LEOs/DA could have nailed him for “brandishing”, if a complaint was filed by one of the ferals. Looks like he was helping the elderly woman with both hands for a minute until the animals swarmed him. A real dichotomy for any CCW/CHL carrier is just *proving* the impending fear factor against a complainant’s charges, in a court. It can often lead to legal problems.
I think as one particular minority becomes the largest minority,before they become the majority, there will be hell to pay...
Not a 19-year-old 9th grader.
One can only wonder what happens to the backs of 'Raheem's' hands as he walks on paved, or unpaved, surfaces.
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