Confrontation escalates after white couple blocks path of Hispanic man, video shows
A white SUV driven by a white couple sat in the middle of an apartment garage’s entrance to block a Hispanic man from getting inside, a viral video showed.
Even though the Hispanic man said he lived in the building and showed the card he used to get into his apartment, the white man in the passenger seat of the SUV wouldn’t budge, the video showed.
Warning: The video embedded below includes graphic language.
“If you have a key card, you can get in yourself, you’re not coming in the [expletive] garage,” the white man yelled at the Hispanic man behind a camera. “I called the cops so you’ve got about five minutes to get out of here.”
The video was shot in San Francisco, California by Michael Barajas at the SOMA Residences, where Barajas lives, KGO reported. Barajas posted the video on his Instagram page. The passenger engaging with Barajas in the video is identified as William Beasely. He is also a tenant at SOMA, according to KGO.
In the video, Beasely tells bystanders he is blocking Barajas from entering the garage to “protect” himself, his girlfriend – the driver – and the building, KRON reported. Later in the video, a bystander defending Barajas gets in a physical altercation with Beasely.
The woman with Beasely pulls the SUV forward and gets out to break up the fight, the video showed. The SOMA Residences posted a statement about the incident on its Facebook page, saying:
“Violent acts, aggression toward any residents, discrimination, and harassment do not have a home here. We strongly condemn the actions that these individuals have taken and are working with the appropriate bodies for a quick resolution...As we are gathering all the facts of the incident, and because of tenants’ rights and privacy, we cannot comment any further pending our findings.”
Beasely was employed by APEX Systems, which issued a statement on Twitter after the video went viral, according to KGO and KRON.
“We have made the decision to terminate the employee, effective immediately. We will not tolerate violent or racist behavior of any kind at Apex Systems,” the Tweet said.
This story was originally published June 26, 2020 at 2:54 PM with the headline "Confrontation escalates after white couple blocks path of Hispanic man, video shows."