NEW YORK (CNN) - A fired African-American employee of Target has filed a federal lawsuit against the retailer accusing it of racial discrimination, claiming his supervisor told him, "Your people are not right for this company."

Anthony Tindall, a 27-year-old former loss-prevention manager for Target, filed the suit in Massachusetts District Court on Jan. 4. His case singles out Tindall's direct supervisor, who he claims directed repeated racial epithets at him. The supervisor is not named as a defendant in the case.

According to the complaint, Tindall was the only minority to hold his position and was a model employee with one of the best performance records in the state.

His supervisor's alleged comments also included, "Those Hispanic guys don't think like us," and "Your people operate on a different time frame." Tindall claims the supervisor left a toy game called "Barrel of Monkeys" in his mailbox with the comment, "I think you get the point."

The suit states that when Tindall complained to the company's human resources department, Target offered him a transfer rather than disciplining the supervisor.

Days after Tindall filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the lawsuit says, he was fired for not apprehending a customer who had allegedly attempted to shoplift a CD.

Tindall is seeking undisclosed punitive damages from Target

In a prepared statement issued to CNN, Target said, "This lawsuit smacks of an attempt to harm Target's reputation because plaintiff is unhappy with Target's decision to fire him. Target is fully confident that Target will prevail and that the ultimate trier of fact, whether a judge or a jury, will likewise find plaintiff's allegations of race discrimination and retaliation to be unsubstantiated."

Shares of Target (down $0.41 to $53.93, Research) fell almost 1 percent Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange to close at $53.93.

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