Mall Security Guard Fired Over Parking Lot Wrestling Match With Photo-Snapping Shopper

Earlier this month, a truck rolled over into a ravine next to the Ohio Valley Mall in Clairsville, OH. Of course, the sight of a huge truck resting in the ravine drew some onlookers from the mall parking lot, many of whom tried to take photos. It also drew one security guard who has lost her job after being involved in a physical altercation with one of these onlookers.

The video above [lots of shouting and some cursing, so it’s headphone time if you’re at work] seems to tell most of the story, with the security guard repeatedly shouting at people in the mall parking lot to not only stop taking photos of the wrecked truck, but to also delete any of those photos.

Much like many other malls, the Ohio Valley Mall apparently has a “no photography” policy, but neither the policy nor the guard’s shouting seemed to sway the onlookers taking photos of the ravine. She threatened to call the police on people if they didn’t cease the photo-taking, to which you can hear replies of “go ahead” from the gathered crowd.

Then, a couple minutes into the video, you see the guard get up close and personal, shouting directly into the face of a woman in what appears to be a motorcycle helmet. This shouting quickly escalates into a tussle, with the shopper getting the best of the guard. Soon, they are both down on the blacktop, with the shopper hitting the guard. At some point, the guard comes close to turning the tables and almost unholsters what looks like pepper spray, but the two combatants end up locked together on the ground until a man walks up and breaks the fight up.

According to the Wheeling News-Register, a rep for the mall’s management says an internal investigation determined that the guard did not act properly in this incident and has been fired from her job for not upholding “all the standards required of [the mall’s security officers.”

Sheriff’s deputies were called to the scene of the scrap, but the shopper had apparently already left by the time they arrived. She was later located but so far neither woman has been charged over the altercation.

As PetaPixel points out, it’s not uncommon for malls to have generalized bans on photography on the property, but this incident is a bit of a gray area as these people were simply standing in the parking lot and taking photos of an accident in the neighboring ravine.

Thanks to David for the tip!

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