New York City man confronts alleged porch pirate with baseball bat: 'Get on your knees!'
Carlos Mejia went viral on TikTok after posting videos of himself stopping an alleged package thief
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}New York City resident Carlos Mejia took matters into his own hands to stop porch pirates from stealing his stuff in a now viral TikTok video.
Security footage from March 30 showed a would-be robber attempting to steal a fake package at Mejia’s home before Mejia stormed outside wielding a baseball bat.
"Oh, s--t, yo, yo, yo, yo, yo, I just didn’t want nobody to take him, bro!" the alleged thief stammered.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"What you got in there?" Meija could be heard demanding.
A viral TikTok video showed Carlos Mejia confronting a potential thief with a bat. (Screenshot via @lossmokes1)
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The man insisted that the package was his and that he lived down the street, to which Mejia repeatedly responded with "I don’t give a f---" while forcing him to the ground.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Get on your knees. Get on your knees right now! Get on your f---ing knees!" Mejia yelled.
Additional videos showed the suspect being arrested after Meija claimed he attempted to jump over the fence.
The New York Police Department later reported that 36-year-old Victor Stazzone was charged with petit larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and criminal trespass.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Mejia posted footage of 36-year-old Victor Stazzone being arrested. (Screenshot via @lossmokes1)
In a TikTok slideshow, Mejia revealed that the fake package only contained a few old French Fries, some trash and a note reading "Keep stealing our s--t and you wont [sic] make the next year b-tch a—f---ing c--t!!"
Mejia’s footage later went viral on TikTok with over 800,000 views on his videos of the incident.
Speaking to Storyful, Mejia explained that he was "done" with porch pirates and was inspired to leave "decoy packages" to lure potential thieves. He added that "plenty" of his neighbors were "tired of people just following the UPS, FedEx, USPS deliveries and taking everything we work hard for."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I was just trying to make an example for those out there doing the same thing … stealing from others," Mejia said.
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Mejia told Storyful that he wanted to set an example for any future porch pirates. (Fox News)
In a statement to Storyful, the NYPD confirmed the arrest.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The report states that an individual did remove a box from the premise without permission or authority," the statement read.