Crowd Turns On Store Employee Seen Loading Van With TP And Water

LOS ANGELES, CA — Police were called to quell tensions outside a Los Angeles grocery store Tuesday morning when customers confronted employees suspected of trying to get first dibs on freshly-stocked water and toilet paper before the store opened.

It's a rare incident of disorder in the city as grocery stores have been quick to take action to curb hoarding to ensure that residents can still get the supplies they need.

Cell phone footage from the the scene outside Gramercy Park Superior Grocers appears to show a man loading multiple packs of toilet paper and water bottles into a van long before doors were opened to the public. The quantities captured on video exceeded the limit of two per customer posted to the store's door.

The Los Angeles Police Department were called to the location at 8811 South Western Avenue at 7:10 a.m. to deal with rising tensions between the store manager and customers, according to officer Rosario Cervantes with the LAPD.

A videographer at the scene described further commotion amid the crowd around 8:30 a.m.

Investigators determined no crime had been committed, police said.

City News Service