A Scottsdale, Arizona man has been arrested and dropped by his real estate agency after a video of a racist confrontation with a Black YouTuber spread online.
According to CBS News and police records, the man, identified as Paul, was arrested over the weekend on a disorderly conduct charge after the video went viral. A charge is an allegation, and the case had not been resolved when this story was published.
YouTuber Dre, 25, and his roommate were recording for their podcast on Friday morning when the man approached them on the sidewalk outside his condo building. In the video, the man can be heard calling himself a racist and using a racial slur while describing the area. Dre told reporters the moment left him with a numbing feeling, and that he was telling himself to stay calm and be smart.
Dre posted the video to his social media channels over the weekend. By Monday, the clip on his Instagram had close to 182,000 views and had been reshared widely.
In his first video, Dre said he believed the man worked at a nearby shop, River Trading Post, because they were standing outside it. The shop’s owner said the man only lives in a condo above the store and has no connection to the business, and Dre has since said publicly that he is aware of that. The owner said the shop has received death threats and negative reviews since the video spread, and described her business as collateral damage.
Paul told 12News off camera on Monday that he should not have said what he did. According to police records, he told officers he was worried about his family’s safety and that he keeps an eye on the neighborhood. The records also state that he said Dre angered him by suggesting Scottsdale was full of white racists, and that he did not mean to be inflammatory.
Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Realty said in a statement that it learned of the video on Sunday and immediately ended its relationship with him, which it described as an inactive independent contractor arrangement. The agency also said it reported him to the Arizona Department of Real Estate and recommended that his license be revoked.
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Dre said he wants the case prosecuted to the fullest extent and called it a major example.
