80-year-old man says he fought back after random attacker clobbered him in head in grocery store

An 80-year-old man said he fought back after a random attacker clobbered him in the head inside a Georgia grocery store late last month.

Felix Dessel told WAGA-TV the attack occurred while he was shopping for groceries in the Kroger at the intersection of LaVista and North Druid Hills Roads in Toco Hills in DeKalb County around lunchtime Aug. 22.

'I'm picking bananas, and somebody attacks me, and I was a little woozy from the shock.'

Dessel told the station a male hit him in the head with a can of soda, which left a "very big bump."

With that, Dessel ran toward the suspect and fought back, WAGA reported, citing a DeKalb County Police report.

Investigators said the suspect then threw multiple items at Dessel, the station reported, adding that Dessel said the suspect also threw punches and kicks.

However, Dessel noted to WAGA that when a Kroger employee saw what was happening, both he and the attacker were told to leave the store — and the suspect took off.

"I said, 'I'm not getting out of the store, I was just attacked,'" Dessel recounted to the station. "I'm picking bananas, and somebody attacks me, and I was a little woozy from the shock."

While the attack was caught on video, DeKalb County Police and Kroger declined to release it, WAGA reported, and investigators have not made any arrests.

The station noted the following statement from Kroger in regard to the incident: "The safety and security of our customers and associates is our top priority. We work with local law enforcement upon request in all ongoing investigations."

Dessel didn't need to visit a hospital after the attack, WAGA reported, but he said he believes more needs to be done to protect customers.

"They need to have security; something tragic is going to happen there," Dessel noted to the station. "I was able to overcome that, and I'm very happy about that. [The attacker] needs to be locked up, and he needs medical, mental help."

In the meantime, Dessel told WAGA he's having a "hard time going to sleep because I'm reviewing [the attack]. The bruises will go away, but [pointing to his head] this is a different story."

You can view a video report here about the incident, which includes an interview with Dessel.

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