Thursday , March 28 2024

Save Mart Janitor in Madera Allegedly Attacked by Gang Members for Wearing Blue

A janitor working in a Save Mart Supermarket in Madera was attacked on Friday night, according to the Madera Police Department, for being mistaken for a gang member and wearing the color blue. Police said the man, in his early twenties, was assaulted around 11:30pm inside of the market located on Howard Road by two suspected gang members. Now, police are asking for the community’s help in identifying and locating the two suspects.

"While he was cleaning the aisles, two Hispanic males came into the store and started calling him deragatory names, calling him a scrap, which is a deragatory name for a southern gang member," said Sgt. Brian Esteves.

Esteves said on Sunday that investigators are honed in on surveillance video from inside of the market to figure out who the two suspects are. Investigators said the young janitor is not affiliated with gangs. They said the only reason the man was attacked was because he was wearing blue – the color of his work uniform.

Esteves said, "Even after being hit, the janitor tried to walk away until he realized this guy was going to keep attacking him. And then he started defending himself. And then once he started defending himself, the second subject grabbed a wine bottle off the shelves and broke it over his head."

Police said the victim lost consciousness after being hit with the wine bottle. He suffered a lasceration at the top of his head, and he has since been released from the hospital.

News of this senseless act of violence sparked anger in many local shoppers. Judy Metcalf is a Madera native. She was shopping at the Save Mart on Sunday and said, "You know, they don’t own a color. These people need to grow up and realize they didn’t invent blue, they didn’t invent red."

Some are even thinking twice about what colors they may wear in public.

Brandon Toney lives in Madera and said he had been going to that Save Mart since he was a little boy. He said, "Any color affiliated with any of that, I don’t try to wear it, express it, because situations like that."

Save Mart Supermarket did not have a comment.

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