Cops Question Black Man For Having Too Many Credit Cards
Fort Worth, Texas – Using credit cards while Black is apparently suspicious.
We are reporting on August 12, at a gas station in the Fort Worth suburb of Burleson, Texas, 39-year-old Brian Friar was withdrawing money from an ATM when officers approached him and insisted on seeing identification. Friar recorded the incident.
In the video, an officer says, “Prove to me the rest of those cards are yours. You have 10 in there.” The officers also questioned why he was in the area, “How did you end up in Burleson?”
Friar said he tried to explain he was getting a tattoo nearby but his wife’s car broke down. He could also be heard saying in the video that he had forgotten his pin numbers so he was using different cards. He showed them all of his credit cards had his name.
He eventually was allowed to leave.
Friar told the Daily Fort Worth, “I hadn’t done anything wrong. They ran my name as though I was a criminal. It was very racist to just come to me and ask me whose credit cards I had… This stuff is scary. I was scared.”
In response to the incident, Burleson Police Chief Billy J. Cordell told the Daily Fort Worth, “Our three officers had stopped in the QT to take a break and I am told were approached by a male (witness) who told them the gentleman was at an ATM machine attempting to get money while using multiple cards and that the transaction kept being denied.”
Cordell continued, “He said the man was acting suspicious. The officers approached the man, activated their body worn cameras and explained why they were contacting him. Officers observed multiple receipts and cards as described by the witness. Officers asked him if he minded sharing identification to match the name on the cards and he eventually provided identification and cards.”
The Burleson Police Department also released a statement to TMZ, claiming “The officers were approached by a patron in the convenience store who was in line behind the man at the ATM and found it suspicious his transactions kept being denied.”
Police also added “they are happy to discuss the incident with the man.”