MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - An Amazon delivery driver is no longer delivering packages for the online giant after striking a Miami Beach condo resident who confronted him over not wearing a mask.
Surveillance video captured the tense exchange between 73-year-old Ray Breslin and the Amazon employee in the lobby of the Mantell Plaza, located along 24th Street, Aug. 4.
“I was mortified,” said Breslin. “I just couldn’t believe it.”
Breslin, who owns several units at the Mantell, said it started as a normal delivery, only he noticed the driver who was trying to enter the building was not wearing a face covering.
“I open the door, I said, ‘Excuse me, you have to have a mask on,'” said Breslin. “He said, ‘I’m just delivering.’ I said, ‘It doesn’t matter. You wanna come in the building, you need to have a mask on.'”
It was then that the situation became frightening for the longtime resident.
“All of a sudden, he just puts his foot at the door like that. He’s not gonna let me close the door,” he said.
Breslin said there was no way he was going to let the driver in without a mask.
“I pushed his foot out of the way and closed the door,” he said.
Breslin said, the driver headed back to his vehicle.
“Then he came back with a mask on, and I thought, ‘OK, not so bad,'” he said, “and I open the door, and I let them in.”
An Amazon delivery driver is seen striking a 73-year-old man in Miami Beach August 4. This came after the man refused to allow the driver into a condo lobby because he wasn’t initially wearing a mask. After putting one on and entering the building this happened. @wsvn #Exclusive pic.twitter.com/NoapThHjTB
— Sheldon Fox-7 News (@fox_sheldon) August 25, 2020
Breslin said the driver followed him into the lobby. When both men were standing near a maintenance closet, that’s when the situation turned physical.
“He brings his phone up like that and smashes me in the face,” he said.
Nearly three weeks later, Breslin said he’s OK but still shaken up.
The victim called police and filed a report, which described the driver’s actions as a battery.
However, detectives have yet to identify the driver.
Breslin provided officers with a picture of the driver’s Amazon delivery vehicle. He said he just wanted the driver to follow city and county mandated mask rules.
“It’s a law,” he said.
When asked if he said anything derogatory to the driver, Breslin replied, “No. The camera doesn’t lie.”
Breslin’s attorney, Michael Grieco, said anytime anyone over the age of 65 is struck like his client was, it’s a felony.
“This is a felony battery,” said Grieco.
The attorney said he’s outraged for his client.
“The fact that an Amazon driver, any delivery driver, would contemplate getting violent with somebody in a situation like that is beyond me,” he said.
Amazon reached out to Breslin in an email. A spokesperson apologized and said the company is investigating.
“That man should not have a job delivering for any company, let alone a big company like Amazon,” said Breslin.
Amazon issued a statement on the incident.
“This does not reflect the high standards we have for delivery service partners. We are addressing the incident with the delivery service partner and can confirm that this individual is no longer delivering Amazon packages. We are in touch with the customer to make things right.”
If you have any information on the delivery driver in this incident or his whereabouts, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.
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