A Walgreens employee is behind bars on assault with a deadly weapon charges in San Francisco after he was accused of stabbing a would-be shoplifter in the eye.
In the early hours of Wednesday, police in San Francisco say that Larry Whitlock, 30, left the drugstore along Castro Way without paying for his goods. Surveillance video shows a worker named Guang Hong, 45, chasing him onto the street. The two exchange words during a standoff.
Hong goes back into the store while Whitlock remains outside. Minutes later, Hong returns, and the pair exchange words again. Whitlock lunges at Hong, and the staffer throws his arms at the alleged thief, causing him to fall to the ground, holding his face. Hong appears to kick Whitlock before going back inside the store. In the video, Hong can be seen wearing a blue Walgreens smock.
Whitlock remains in the area, and Hong once again comes outside. The two walk out of the frame. It was around 20 minutes after the original altercation when police were called to the scene after receiving a report about a stabbing. That particular store is open 24 hours, the only one of its kind in the city.
The security footage was first broadcast by FriscoLive415.
Hong was taken into custody, Whitlock was brought to a nearby hospital before being charged with battery and petty theft. His injuries have been described as ‘non-life threatening.’
The San Francisco Fire Department confirmed that Whitlock was stabbed in the eye. ABC San Francisco reports that the weapon used was a set of keys.
Terry Asten Bennet, the president of the Castro Merchants Association and operator of Cliff’s Variety store, told NBC San Francisco that while she’s sympathetic to Hong, she believes he should never have followed Whitlock outside. Bennet said that her staff are also subject to threats from the local homeless community.
Another resident, Chris Murray, who often shops in the store, told CBS San Francisco after seeing the video: “You know, I feel really bad after seeing what I just saw… I’m pretty surprised to see him do something like that. But like I said, these people deal with this every single night…. You go in there and they don’t even try and hide it. They go in with their bags open and just start scooping the aisle into the bag.”
In 2023, a security guard, Michael Earl-Wayne Anthony, was arrested for shooting dead a would-be shoplifter named Banko Brown at a Market Street Walgreens in the city. Charges against Anthony were later dropped.
If found guilty on charges of assault with a deadly weapon, Hong could face up to four years in prison and a fine of $10,000, whereas Whitlock could face up to six months in prison and a fine of $3,000.
