TAMPA, Fla. — Knocked unconscious in the middle of a store nearly a year ago, a Tampa man wants police to find whoever left him scarred.
David Avila is sharing his story for the first time, only to 10 Tampa Bay's Angelina Salcedo, with the hope it will help him and his family get clarity.
"I don't want to be emotional, but I'm in a lot of pain and hurt. I know I could have died because the doctors told me," Avila said Wednesday evening.
The impact left him with a brain injury and two fractures in his skull. The incident happened at the Family Dollar on West Columbus Drive last May. Avila said he was there to buy groceries after work, but in the process something went wrong.
A Tampa Police report given to us by the family shows the manager at the time said David was asked to leave the store after getting aggressive with staff. A customer stepped in and "knocked him out."
The brain injury that makes it hard for him to remember what happened and to walk. When asked if he remembers being hit, David said he didn't remember or feel anything.
"I just remember shopping. I don't know. That report shows they picked me up from inside the store," Avila said.
The report shows he was unconscious before being taken to St. Joseph's Hospital. It also shows he was aggressive with hospital staff and didn't want to talk to police.
David's family confirmed his mental state at the time, but said it was because of the impact and he couldn't recognize family when they went to see him.
After months of waiting for some kind of resolution, they just want the unidentified man listed in the report to be found and held accountable for David's pain.
"That person or whoever it may have been, I don't want that person in society. I don't want them to hurt somebody else," Avila said.
There are multiple cameras outside and inside the Family Dollar store that were working the day the incident happened. Police have the video and 10 Tampa Bay requested it. The city said it couldn't be made public because the investigation was still open. A manager at the Family Dollar says she tried to pull the video from that day for the family, but it was erased from the system.
We asked Tampa Police for more information, concerning the incident and the 911 calls that day, but didn't get anything back for the same reason.
The family continues to try and help David heal and support him now that he's out of work. If you'd like to help them you can by clicking or tapping here.