Port Washington gas station clerk attacked, man accused
PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. - A Port Washington man is charged with substantial battery and stalking after a Sept. 19 altercation with a gas station clerk.
Prosecutors accuse Damion Payne, 28, of throwing "some sort of liquid" in the clerk's face after repeated arguments over vape pens.
Police were called to the Port Washington gas station around 8 p.m. Tuesday night. Officers found the business was locked but could see the clerk "wiping her eyes" in apparent distress, according to a criminal complaint.
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The clerk told police a customer threw "some sort of liquid in her face," per the complaint. She said her "face was burning" and she "could not see." Some of the liquid splashed on the counter was collected for evidence.
The complaint states security footage from the store showed the man, since identified as Payne, walk into the store and straight to the bathroom with a water bottle in his hand. He came out less than a minute later, had a brief conversation with the clerk, threw the liquid from the water bottle into her face and then left.
Damion Payne
The victim later told investigators, per the complaint, that Payne had been in previous times to buy a vape pen – on one occasion requesting that she exchange one he'd already bought the day before because it was empty. She said Payne argued with her that time, and after talking to the store's owner agreed to give him a new vape pen but told him to never come back.
The complaint states Payne returned to the store the day before the altercation and again asked to buy a vape pen. The clerk said she told him he needed to leave because he was "being such a problem." He eventually left with a new vape pen but said: "Hands to God, you have not seen the last of me. I'll be back."
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Police ultimately identified Payne through video footage. Once taken into custody, he said the substance in the water bottle was "only water," and said "if someone got a bottle of water thrown in their face, there must have been a good reason."
Payne made his initial court appearance Sept. 22 and had cash bond set at $7,500.