Collin County

McKinney Man Suing Tom Thumb Over Alleged Wine Bottle Attack

A McKinney man says he was attacked by a grocery store employee with a wine bottle. Now, he is suing.

The alleged attack happened on Sept. 26, at about 7:20 p.m. at a Tom Thumb on W. Virginia Parkway in McKinney.

An arrest affidavit said surveillance video shows the victim pushing a shopping cart down an aisle. The employee walks up behind him, “then winds up and strikes [the victim] across the side of the head from behind with a wine bottle.”

According to the affidavit, the victim pushed his cart into the employee then ran off.

Surveillance video, according to the affidavit, appeared to show the victim being chased by the employee until another co-worker intervened.

Attorney Jason Burress said his client, a 45-year-old father, called 911.

When officers arrived, they questioned the employee, 28-year-old Riley Collins.

Police said Collins told them he couldn’t recall what happened and, “didn’t seem to make sense while speaking to officers.” Police said Collins kept falling asleep while sitting on the ground in handcuffs and continuously had to be woken up.

Police said Collins claimed the victim made a comment to him before the attack.

Burress insisted it was unprovoked. 

“My client had never met, never exchanged any pleasantries, words of any kind, on any date before this happened, on the day this happened,” Burress said.

Burress said his client suffered several fractures to his face and a traumatic brain injury for which he is still be treated.

He said his client is facing a mound of medical bills.

“Unfortunately, we've received no cooperation from Tom Thumb,” Burress said.

Thursday, Burress filed a lawsuit against Tom Thumb and Albertsons, its parent company, for more than $1 million in damages.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Tom Thumb said, "We are not at liberty to comment on this matter as it is under investigation. Tom Thumb strives to make every effort to provide a safe shopping environment for our customers and our employees."

Collins remains in the Collin County Jail. He's charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Collins wasn’t arrested the night of the alleged attacked.

Instead, he was taken to a hospital, “Due to him falling asleep, being confused about the incident and him hearing things that weren’t said,” according to court documents.

He was arrested on Oct. 2, six days after the alleged attack. He declined a request for an interview from NBC 5.

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