CAUGHT ON CAMERA: "He went crazy!" Suspect accused of shoplifting beats gas station clerks with their own bat

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- Two gas station clerks are recovering from serious injuries after they were attacked by a man accused of shoplifting -- and it was all caught on camera.

It happened at the Mobil gas station near 50th and Lisbon.

Police got a call about a battery incident on Saturday, February 21st around 9:30 p.m. Two gas station employees had to be hospitalized after what happened.

A witness tells FOX6 News the suspect just "snapped."

"I was debating should I help (the clerks) or what," Luis Caraballo said.

Caraballo says he feared for the clerks involved.

"I would have helped (the clerks), if I had...but I didn`t want to help him if dude had a gun -- then I get shot for no reason," Caraballo said.

Witnesses say the 21-year-old suspect was aggressive after he was accused of shoplifting. The gas station clerks tried to get him to leave the store.

"He tried to steal from the store and stuff and they caught him. Then he tried to like, jump on the owners in the store and tried to hit them with a stick. It was crazy. It happened fast," Caraballo said.

Video taken by a bystander shows the clerks confronting the suspect. Outside the store, the suspect appears to continue antagonizing the clerks, and it appears he won't walk away.

The clerks have wooden bats in an attempt to get the suspect off the property. A garbage can is seen flying at them.

"He was still trying to fight the owners. He wasn`t trying to leave. He wanted something bad. He went crazy," Caraballo said.

Eventually, the suspect is seen walking back towards the store's door -- kicking it. The clerk takes a swing with the wooden bat, but the suspect grabs that bat -- knocking one man to the ground before turning to the other clerk and attacking him.

Gas station customers say they're shocked to see how the incident escalated.

"That was real crazy. I never seen nothing like that before. I`m shocked actually because the police station is right here," a customer said.

The suspect fled the scene. The clerks managed to get up and stumble back into the gas station. They're expected to be okay. Employees say the clerks had to get stitches and will be out of work for at least the next week.

"They are cool people. They didn`t deserve that. They treat everybody good," Caraballo said.

The suspect in this case was arrested Sunday, February 22nd on Good Hope Road.