A private security guard working for the Metreon Target store struck a San Francisco man at least 10 times with a baton on Friday evening, after the man punched him in the face for allegedly taking his money.
Before the punch and subsequent beating, Shan Bowerman, 56, said the guard forcibly took his cash from his pocket and used a stun gun on him twice.
Bowerman said the guard took his money after siding with Bowerman’s girlfriend in a dispute over money: The girlfriend tried to take Bowerman’s cash and said it was hers; Bowerman said the money was his and she was stealing it.
Part of the incident was captured on video, on the crowded street corner at Mission and Fourth streets.
Just before 6:30 p.m., Bowerman was following two security guards in International Protective Service, Inc. uniforms from the northwest corner of Mission Street at Fourth Street, shouting, “give me back my money!” The guards appeared to be walking hurriedly away from Bowerman, and one was reholstering a weapon.
When all three men reached the southeast corner of Mission and Fourth streets, where the Metreon is located, Bowerman, who kept demanding his money back, punched one security guard. The guard responded by repeatedly beating Bowerman with a baton. The guard was shorter but had a stronger build than Bowerman. He appeared to be in his 30s.
Bowerman attempted to get away and is seen on video shielding himself from the blows, which mostly landed on his legs. He remained upright during the incident. Afterward, Bowerman had drips of blood on his face, and he called the police to give a statement. A small private ambulance arrived soon after with medics to attend to his injuries, and shortly after Bowerman was moved into a fire department ambulance for further care.
The scene was witnessed by this reporter, who recorded it.
The guard did not answer any questions from this reporter, and went into a small office on the ground floor of the Target store that said “Team Members Only” on the door. It is unclear whether police officers questioned the guard; they appeared focused on Bowerman’s allegation that just prior to the incident with the security guard, he had been attacked by his girlfriend.
Before Bowerman was taken away by the ambulance, he spoke with this reporter. He said that his girlfriend had beaten him with a stick, which eyewitnesses corroborated. The couple allegedly fought over Bowerman’s money before the guard intervened and purportedly took it from Bowerman.
When the guard who hit Bowerman was asked about the incident, he said, “You have to talk to Target about that, ma’am.” He then went into the office, refusing to answer questions.
When the second guard involved in the incident was asked about it, he denied being present despite video footage of him on the scene.
“You’re trying to put the pieces together,” he said. “But if you knew what happened, you wouldn’t be putting the pieces together.”
Target did not immediately return requests for comment.
Before being taken away by the ambulance, Bowerman said he had been paid welfare today, the first of the month, through the County Adult Assistance Program, and had about $700 in his possession when he got into an argument with his girlfriend.
When Mission Local spoke with him, he had about $60. He said the argument escalated and got violent when his girlfriend started hitting him with a stick — so he tried to get away.
At that point, he said, the Target security guards got involved and sided with Bowerman’s girlfriend, who had loudly accused him of stealing her money.
“He tased me two times,” said Bowerman, who said he refused to hand over his cash. “So then he grabs all the money in my pocket.”
It is unclear how the altercation began, but multiple eyewitnesses said the money in question appeared to be Bowerman’s.
Marlena, a uniformed Yerba Buena Community Guide, said she saw the woman — allegedly the girlfriend — “running after him with a stick” and saw Bowerman running away. She said that Bowerman probably should have called the police about his money being stolen instead of hitting the security guard.
The guard “ran across the street because the guy [Bowerman] was fighting her. And then he caught [Bowerman] on the corner by the bus stop,” she said.
Another guide employed by the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District who declined to give his name, said that before the security guard got involved, he saw the woman take Bowerman’s money and “whooping his ass with a pipe.” It looked like Bowerman was “choking her out,” he said, “but she took his money” and Bowerman was trying to get it back.
More may have occurred inside the Target store, but witnesses dispersed quickly.
Officer Nestor Muñoz of the San Francisco Police Department, who responded to the scene, said, “There was something else that happened inside, other people are claiming that she’s a victim. So there’s a lot of this back and forth inside of Target.”
Bowerman was booked in August for having an unregistered car and a firearm, and again arrested on Oct. 15 for undisclosed causes. In 2022, he was arrested for “damaging or taking part of a vehicle.” Earlier this year, court filings show he was a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the Tenderloin Housing Clinic, a low-income housing nonprofit, claiming retaliation and violations of health and safety codes.
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