CBS4 Exclusive: Wal-Mart Employee Arrested For Shooting Co-Worker's Car Over Award
DEERFIELD (CBSMiami) -- Investigators say bad blood over an employee of the month award at a South Florida Wal-Mart store led to gunfire and criminal charges.
According to a Broward Sheriff's Office arrest report last month's employee of the month at a Deerfield Beach Wal-Mart store on South Military Trail had her car shot up by a co-worker who was angry after she won the award. Willie Mitchell is charged with discharging a firearm from a vehicle.
The Broward Sheriff's Office said surveillance video from a Wal-Mart parking lot shows Mitchell parking next to a co-worker's earlier in December. A few minutes later, investigators said Mitchell rolls down a back window, fires a shot into his co-worker's car then drives off. The co-worker was not in her vehicle at the time.
BSO Spokesperson Veda Coleman-Wright said the shooting stemmed from some bad feelings after the victim won an Employee of the Month Award.
"She was announced as the employee of the month which you would think that would be something good, people would be happy for her," Coleman-Wright said. "But there was one employee who wasn't happy."
Investigators say after the award was announced Mitchell started arguing with the victim about their workload. The victim told detectives that "during the argument Mitchell told her repeatedly, 'I'm gonna show you.'"
Hours later, BSO says Mitchell did just that. A witness told BSO that he spoke to Mitchell in his car while it was parked next to the victim's. The witness said Mitchell "asked him if the victim was currently working to which the witness replied yes."
BSO says minutes later the shot was fired. The victim did not want to speak on camera but CBS4's Carey Codd saw her car window, which has been fixed.
Investigators said they're still stumped on the exact motive for the shooting.
"Perhaps (Mitchell) wanted to be employee of the month but clearly these actions that we saw in response to this, I think we see why he wasn't chosen as employee of the month," Coleman-Wright said.
A Wal-Mart representative told CBS 4 News that Willie Mitchell no longer works for the company. The spokesperson also said that the employee of the month does not receive any money or gifts. She said it is strictly a recognition from the store.
