MARIETTA, Ga. — A man is in custody after allegedly threatening a Walmart employee with a knife after a domestic dispute that caused a panicked evacuation of the Marietta business Monday morning.
Police charged 50-year-old Jerry Wayne Thompson with simple assault and disorderly conduct in connection to the incident.
Marietta Police said the 911 center got a call from the suspect around 8 a.m. about a family dispute, but dispatchers advised that no had been hurt and there were no weapons involved. But moments later, police rushed to the scene after getting new information that Thompson had reportedly grabbed a large kitchen knife from an aisle and was trying to remove it from the packaging while "aggressively approaching" an employee. It was at that point that store representatives employees decided to evacuate the building.
Marietta police have not identified the victim, but they took Thompson to the Cobb County Adult Detention Center.
With communities around the nation on edge following shootings this weekend in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio that left 29 people dead and dozens more injured, the call triggered a larger police response.
"The Marietta Police Department understands our community is concerned after the horrific shootings that occurred over the weekend in Texas and Ohio. We recognize how events like the one detailed above could cause the average person anxiety," the department said, adding that they are working to organize another Civilian Response to Active Shooter Event training.
Marietta Police officer Chuck McPhilamy said that after the confusion, the situation was “under control” and store operations returned to normal.
No one was hurt.
MORE HEADLINES