DeKalb, Illinois. — Black Friday apparently lived up to the dark side of the moniker, claiming the life of a man.
Walmart employees apprehended and were detaining a man they believe was a shoplifter, but by the time cops got there to do their job — the guy was dead!
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Witnesses say that one of the Walmart employees applied a chokehold to the suspect. That man is no longer working for Walmart.
“No amount of merchandise is worth someone’s life,” Walmart spokesperson Dianna Gee said Sunday in a statement, “Associates are trained to disengage from situations that would put themselves or others at risk.”
DeKalb police say that the unidentified man took two DVD players from the Walmart at around 1:30 a.m. The man, who appeared to be middle aged, exited through the front door, but was caught by the trio in the parking lot where a “physical altercation” took place, according to the police report.
When police arrived, they found the trio on top of the man. An officer who handcuffed the suspected shoplifter detected no resistance from him and ordered the employees off. Police found the man to be unresponsive and bleeding from his nose and mouth. Emergency units responded and transported him to DMC-Hillandale Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“This is truly a sad situation,” Gee said. “We don’t know all of the facts right now. We’re in the process of working with law enforcement to deterimine all of the facts and cooperating and providing any information we have to assist in the investigation.
The cause and manner of death is to be determined by the DeKalb Medical Examiner’s office at a later time.