Passerby and employee randomly attacked outside bar in Dallas – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth

Surveillance footage outside a downtown Dallas bar shows a man unexpectedly attacking an innocent bystander with a long stick, then punching another man in the face and fleeing.

It happened just before 2 a.m. Saturday in front of the City Tavern on Elm Street.

Dallas police are searching for the suspect. NBC 5 spoke to the first man attacked, who says he is still dealing with the aftermath.

Adam Mercado and his girlfriend Taylor Monnet were out and about in downtown Dallas early Saturday morning. The two decided to meet up with friends at the City Tavern.

“As we were walking up, I noticed a gentleman holding a big stick that looked like a spear,” Mercado said. “And at first my senses were going crazy, my intuition was going crazy, so I said, you know what, let’s go inside and have a drink.”

Shortly before two in the morning, the couple decided to go home and stepped out onto the terrace.

“And then I felt it,” Mercado said. “The sound was so loud it almost sounded like a gunshot. That scared me.”

Surveillance footage showed the man with the baton hitting Mercado on the back of the head without warning, knocking him to the ground.

The suspect then struck a City Tavern employee before leaving the scene.

The video shows Mercado lying motionless while Monnet calls for help.

“I didn’t know what to do at that moment,” Monnet said. “So I ran into the bar and screamed and begged everyone to help me.”

The couple said police and paramedics arrived, but they declined an ambulance ride due to cost.

“A few hours later, I finally went to the hospital because my head, my ears, everything was ringing, I was in pain,” Mercado said. “And I knew I had to get checked out.”

Mercado was diagnosed with a concussion.

He said the next few days left him in constant pain and with a foggy brain, and he didn’t want to leave the apartment because he was still afraid of the random attack.

“It was just really traumatic, you know, I’ve never been subjected to violence,” Mercado said. “Very surreal.”

Dallas police told NBC 5 that investigators have not yet identified the suspect and that the investigation into the case is ongoing.

The couple said they wanted justice – and that the community knew what could happen on the streets in a split second.

“I am grateful to be alive and I hope something like this never happens again,” Mercado said.

A GoFundMe campaign for Mercado’s medical expenses had raised more than $2,500 as of Tuesday night. Donors can donate here.