FAYETTEVILLE (KFMS) — A Fayetteville man was arrested Sunday night (June 5) following an incident where he allegedly beat a store clerk unconscious, after the man reported his shoplifting.
Taja Anderson, 19, is facing felony charges of aggravated robbery and second degree battery, according to a preliminary report.
According to the report Anderson and three others, one male and two female, went to the EZ Mart on North Leverett Avenue around 2 a.m. on Saturday (June 4). A clerk overheard Anderson telling the group that he was going to go in and steal items.
Inside, the clerk saw the two men stealing items while the two women distracted the on-duty clerk, the report states.
After the group left, the clerk reported the thefts to the on-duty clerk, then left the store and started walking along Poplar Street.
The group pulled up behind the clerk in a silver SUV and the two men got out. According to the report, one of the men asked the clerk, “Did you just snitch on us?” and then they hit the clerk, knocking him unconscious.
Afterward, Anderson began punching and kicking the clerk’s face, chest and head, before the four take off in the vehicle.
Anderson was arrested on Sunday, after getting involved in an unrelated fight, the report states. He identified himself in a surveillance photo from EZ mart, but told officers he was too intoxicated to remember the incident.
Anderson is in the Washington County Detention Center, where he is being held on a $50,000 bond.
The clerk was taken to the ER, where he was diagnosed with a concussion and amnesia. He received multiple stitches and staples, and had massive facial swelling and several abrasions.
