Disturbing footage captured the moment a Texas brute armed with a 5-foot-long tree branch that resembled a spear randomly cracked an unsuspecting bar patron across the head and then punched an employee in the face.
Adam Mercado and his girlfriend, Taylor Monnet, met up with friends at City Tavern in downtown Dallas on Friday before he noticed the man holding a branch, he said on social media.
Mercado recalled the man had “whittled” the branch into a spear, which he estimated to be about five feet long, but he continued to enjoy the quality time with his group on the bar’s front patio.
“Initially, my senses were going crazy, my intuition was going crazy, so I said, you know what, let’s go inside and get a drink,” Mercado told NBC Dallas Fort Worth.
However, around 2 a.m. on Saturday, the couple decided to head home and bid farewell to friends just as the man walked by on the sidewalk.
The suspect winds back before swinging and striking Mercado in the head, sending the patron to the ground, clutching his head.
“The sheer force of the swing was enough to shatter said branch in half, sending shards of splinters onto those nearby,” Mercado said on social media. “The thunderous sound was so loud it truly resembled a gunshot, sending a shockwave of panic across the patio patrons.”
The random man then turned to a bar employee near the entrance and punched him in the face without hesitation.
The violent stranger then casually walks away “into the dark downtown Dallas shadows” as Mercado’s girlfriend can be seen pacing around to both men before rushing into the bar for help.
“I didn’t know what to do in that instance,” an emotional Monnet told NBC. “So I’m running into the bar, and I’m screaming, just begging for help from anyone.”
Mercado, a bartender in Dallas with limited healthcare options, declined to take an ambulance ride, concerned about the cost.
“Eventually went to the hospital a few hours later because my head, my ears, everything was ringing, I was sore,” Mercado said. “And I knew that I had to get checked out.”
He was diagnosed with a concussion after being admitted, according to NBC 6.
Mercado said he has been having trouble leaving his apartment since the attack and said the whole ordeal has been “very surreal.”
“It’s just been really traumatic, you know, I’ve never had any type of violence done unto me,” Mercado revealed. “I am grateful and thankful that I’m alive, and I hope this never happens again.”
Police have yet to identify the suspect, and their investigation remains ongoing.
The Post has reached out to the Dallas Police Department for comment.
The couple wants the community to be aware of their surroundings since the violent attacker remains at large, they both told ABC 8.
They are also asking anyone who recognizes the man to come forward and report him to the police.
“I always have my guard up; make sure you keep your head on a swivel–because for 10 seconds, I let my guard down, and this happened,” Mercado told the outlet.
Since the start of the year, Dallas has had over 2,000 reported aggravated assaults and over 7,000 simple assaults city-wide, according to data provided by the Dallas Police Department.
In May, there were over 500 violent crimes reported.
