A customer waiting to pick up an online order at the Fayetteville Walmart on Dec. 23 got more than a filled order, when a man in an adjacent vehicle exited with a handgun and threatened to open fire.
Fayetteville police on Dec. 23, 2021 at approximately 2:55 p.m. were dispatched to the Walmart store at the Fayette Pavilion in reference to an alleged verbal dispute between two customers in the parking lot.
Fayetteville Police Department spokesperson Ann Marie Burdett said police met with the complainant, who remained at the scene. The complainant told the police they arrived at Walmart to pick up an online order and were told by a store associate to park and turn on their hazard light.
The complainant also told police there were no parking spots available, so they parked behind another vehicle.
“The complainant informed police the owner of the vehicle, an unknown black male subject, returned to their car and allegedly began to blow his horn and scream obscenities and told the complainant they needed to back up their vehicle,” Burdett said.
The complainant said they complied with the subject’s request and backed up their vehicle, but not to the subject’s liking. The complainant said at that point the unidentified male escalated the confrontation.
“The complainant told police the subject retreated to his vehicle, allegedly obtained a handgun, walked up to the complainant’s vehicle, pointed the handgun at the complainant and threatened to shoot the complainant,” said Burdett.
Burdett said the complainant told police an off-duty College Park police officer intervened and told the man with a pistol to leave the area, adding that the Fayette County Communications Center E-911 dispatcher could not confirm that an off-duty College Park Officer was in the area at the time of the alleged incident.
However, a witness in the area confirmed the complainant’s statement regarding the incident, and witness statements were obtained, Burdett explained.
Burdett said the Walmart video surveillance footage of the incident was captured and was provided to police for evidentiary purposes.
The case is under investigation.
