'He Immediately Just Spit In My Face': Man Accused Of Racist DoorDash Driver Assault Denies It Ever Happened

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Mike Anderson, the man accused of assaulting and shouting racial slurs at DoorDash delivery driver Haarun Galbayte, says he has proof the alleged attack never happened.

Earlier this month, DoorDash driver Haarun Galbayte claimed Mike Anderson punched him in the head and told him to go back to his country after dropping food off at his Greenwood home near Lake Minnetonka.

Anderson tells WCCO he passed a polygraph test this week that proves he is innocent. He also has security footage from his home that shows what led up to the incident.

Anderson never thought a Sunday morning order of coffee and pastries could turn his life upside down.

"It's the last kind of thing I could ever imagine that would happen to me in my life," Anderson said.

About 30 minutes after ordering through DoorDash on October 27, Anderson says his wife got a call from Galbayte, telling her to come out and get her order. She refused, saying she specifically noted on the ticket to bring the items to her door. That's when Anderson went outside and found his food on the driveway.

"I yelled, 'Hey!' real loud to get his attention, and he stopped his car right away," Anderson said.

He says this was the second time Galbayte had delivered food to the residence within a week and refused to bring it to the door.

"I swore at the guy. I said … 'It's called DoorDash, OK? It's not that complicated!'" Anderson said. "And he immediately just spit in my face from point-blank range."

Anderson is adamant he never touched the driver and never uttered any racial slurs.

"I never said anything about referencing his ethnicity, his country of origin, his race, his religion," Anderson said.

Earlier this month, Galbayte, along with the Minnesota Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, held a press conference where a very different version of events was outlined.

"He was flagged down by a gentleman who began immediately verbally assaulting him [with expletives] … 'Go back to your country!'" said Jaylani Hussein, the executive director CAIR-MN.

Galbayte also accused Anderson of punching him in the head three times. Anderson was arrested and booked on fifth-degree assault charges, which he and his attorney Joe Tamburino are fighting.

No hate crime charges have been filed.

WCCO reached out to Galbayte on the phone this afternoon. He is standing by his version of what happened, and claims he never spit on Anderson.