Aaron Blackwell along with his cousin Durrell Cunningham were first approached by a Nordstrom Rack security guard who was walking toward their car.
The guard had watched the two pay for their items inside the Indianapolis store but he still followed them outside and attempted to take down their license plate number.
“You’re acting suspicious,” the man informed the two men, who are both black. He also mentioned that if he did not see identification soon, the man threatened to tow their car or have them arrested.
The standoff happened November 12 in the parking lot outside of Nordstrom Rack and was captured in a 17-minute cellphone video that has since gone viral.
Accusations of the two men being racially profiled by a white security guard, who was later identified as Lawrence Township deputy constable Daryl Jones.
On November 13, the video was posted to YouTube and Lawrence Township chief constable Terry Burns revealed he then “made the decision immediately” to fire Jones that night.
It should be noted that Jones was also off-duty at the time and is currently no longer employed at the store.