A Queens man says he was labeled a shoplifter because he is black and then humiliated after a Gap store staffer accused him of stealing and forced him to pull down his pants in the middle of the bustling Woodbury Common outlet mall.
Rohan Barnswell was at the store with a female friend in June and walked out after not making any purchases, according to his Brooklyn federal lawsuit filed Monday.
But after only a few steps, he was suddenly surrounded by a swarm of mall cops on Segways and bicycles, according to the suit.
With shoppers looking on, a Gap staffer loudly accused Barnswell of stealing items from the retailer and demanded that he lift up his shirt, according to the suit.
The Gap employee “interrogated Plaintiff in front of numerous customers who stopped to see the commotion,” court papers state.
“Finding no merchandise under his shirt, the Gap employee then ordered plaintiff to remove his trousers also in public and in front of numerous people shopping at Woodbury Common,” the suit states.
“After the Gap employee forced him to remove his pants, The Gap employee caused plaintiff significant anxiety by circling around plaintiff to see his backside when his pants were removed.”
After failing to find any stolen items on Barnswell, the employee sheepishly apologized and walked off, court papers state.
“Sorry,” the unnamed employee said after being ordered to apologize by Barnswell’s friend, according to the suit.
“Plaintiff was unlawfully racially targeted, stopped and detained by Defendants’ employees,” the suit states. “Defendants and their agents and/or employees focus their surveillance on minority customers to the exclusion of white customers.”
Barnswell is suing the Gap and Woodbury Common for an undisclosed sum.
The suit comes after a string of high profile lawsuits by black shoppers against retailers including Barney’s and Macy’s for falsely accusing them of theft.