Stafford road rage incident explodes into racist rant by a licensed security officer
STAFFORD, Texas - A road rage incident escalated into a face-to-face racial rant by a licensed Texas security officer in Stafford.
The white security guard who was caught on camera spewing racial slurs to a Black woman is now under investigation because the woman says he also punched and damaged her car, and spit on her.
SUGGESTED: Houston mayoral candidate Sheila Jackson Lee cusses out staffer in leaked audio recording
"Get the (expletive) away from me, you classless (expletive)," David Tupper says on tape. Later in the recording Denishia Lewis says "I'm a stupid N-word everybody," and Tupper adds. "Yes she is a stupid N-word," but both use the real derogatory word, not the abbreviated term.
Before hurling hateful words there in a gas station, Lewis says she first encountered security guard David Tupper stopped in Stafford at a traffic light behind him. She says when the light turned green he didn't go.
"I literally tapped the horn like this (honk)," Lewis demonstrates with a honk that's barely audible.
Lewis says she thought she was giving a police officer a courtesy toot, but she says he continued to sit there on his motorcycle. When the left lane cleared, she says she went around him.
"I hear acceleration from the bike and the next thing you know he accelerates from the right lane and punches my right mirror," says Lewis. According to her, he hit the mirror so hard it cracked the plastic casing.
So Lewis says when he stopped and went inside the gas station, she approached him.
"And I said excuse me sir, did you really just hit my mirror, like, I need some insurance information," Lewis explains. She says she couldn't believe the racist names he was calling her, so she started recording.
"Yes she is a stupid N-word," Tupper says on the recording and after Lewis says. "He hit my mirror" Tupper adds. "Go fix your car and stop honking at people when you don't need to."
"He called me a coon, a monkey, a (n-word). I'm not a coon. I'm not a monkey, and I'm not an n-word. I'm Black, and I'm American, and I'm human just like he is," says Lewis.
Online, David Tupper says he's a former law enforcement officer. Tupper is currently a licensed Texas armed security guard and private investigator. His gun is holstered on his hip in the video.
"If I would have made the wrong move or given him any reason. That's why he said all of those things about me, because he wanted to have a reason to take me out. I was afraid. I was so afraid. Even now, I feel physically drained. I couldn't even go to work the next two days after this happened," says Lewis.
"That's what you are, N-word trash," Tupper also says in the 29-second video. "I am still in shock. I have not been able to sleep. I had bad dreams last night about this man. All I see is his face. I've never been through anything like this and for me to go through it in the year 2023 to see what my ancestors went through. For me, I spoke up, and I'm speaking loud and proud because my son has to grow up," Lewis explains.
Her 13-year-old son was in the car with her. Lewis says she had just picked her son up from school.
"It's very emotional for me. He made me feel like I was literally in the slavery days. When I walked out of the store, he started following me. 'Come here you n-word, b-word. Come here you n-word, b-word' he was saying and when I turned around, he spit on me," Lewis says. After he spit on her, she says she walked away and reported it to police.
The Stafford Police Department confirms the incident is under investigation.
"I hope justice is served. I hope he never gets employed as an officer, security officer, security guard, armed or unarmed, none of that anymore," says Lewis.
Two security companies have taken to social media saying David Tupper is a "former" employee and the companies say they find his behavior "deeply troubling" and "reprehensible."
FOX 26 reached out to Tupper for comment, but I haven't heard back from him yet.