Dramatic twist as popular fruit shop owner is finally brought to justice after being brutally sprayed with pepper spray along with his teenage son for posing in his underwear for an Aldi ad outside his shop
- Greek shop owner and his son sprayed with pepper spray
- The police thought the shop owner was a speed camera
- He has always maintained that it was a mistaken identity
A popular fruit shop owner who was sprayed with pepper spray by police was finally brushed aside after claiming he was the victim of ‘mistaken identity’.
St Bernards Fruit and Veg Market owner John Kapiris shared extraordinary footage of the confrontation at his Adelaide business last year.
Police visited his business after reports came in of a man exposing himself nearby.
Even though the incident was miles away from Mr. Kapiris’ shop, the officers found him outside in his underwear and began questioning him.
This led to a heated confrontation in which the officers eventually sprayed Mr. Kapiris and his 15-year-old son with pepper spray.
The shop owner has always maintained that he was the victim of mistaken identity and had done nothing wrong.
Mr Kapiris said he performed a funny skit to promote his business and left his underwear on.
On Tuesday, Mr Kapiris’ story was finally confirmed when police chose not to pursue charges against him.
St Bernards Fruit and Veg Market owner John Kapiris shared extraordinary footage of the confrontation at his store
Police had launched an internal investigation into the incident last year but have not commented on the latest development.
Mr. Kapiris told the Adelaide advertiser: ‘I have been arrested for essentially wrongful identification.
“Twelve months in court with huge attorney fees plus loss of case. We lost a lot of customers because of this because they didn’t believe our story.’
He previously told Daily Mail Australia he had not been near the reported incident, but acknowledged staging photos for his famous “dropped-pants specials” in front of an Aldi sign recently erected in front of his business.
The popular shop owner is known for his witty skits, where he takes his pants off to entertain customers – but always leaves his underwear on.
Mr Kapiris explained that he was wearing underwear while staging the photos.
He was charged with a range of crimes, including indecent exposure, disorderly conduct, resisting police, and refusing to give his name and address.
He said at the time: “I have been wrongly accused of a crime I did not commit,” he said.
“They thought I was the suspect, but our cameras will show I was here all day.
“In the beginning I was nice to them, but they wouldn’t listen and started pushing me. That rubbed me the wrong way.
“I have the utmost respect for the police, but what they did was very unfair.”
The footage shows an officer demanding him to put his hands behind his back and starting to push Mr. Kapiris.
Mr. Kapiris’ story was finally vindicated when the police chose not to pursue charges against him
The entrepreneur’s 15-year-old son rushes to his father’s defense as the couple is sprayed with pepper spray. The boy can be seen running away wincing in pain
He had staged photos for his famous ‘dropped-pants specials’ in front of an Aldi sign
The entrepreneur’s 15-year-old son rushes to his father’s defense as the couple is sprayed with pepper spray.
The boy can be seen running away wincing in pain.
“I would rather have been zapped with a taser than with pepper spray,” Kapiris told Daily Mail Australia.
“Three days later, my hands are still burning.
“It left me very shocked. I suffer from very bad asthma and anxiety.
“I thought I was going to die.”