An armed confrontation at the Walmart Supercenter in Brewer has drawn a large police presence to the store, where shoppers left inside were told to shelter in place Friday evening.
The confrontation involved an armed person in a vehicle in the Walmart parking lot, according to the Brewer Police Department. Shoppers left in the store were safe, police said.
In addition to Walmart, the situation forced the nearby Ruby Tuesday restaurant to close.
Police have blocked off the Walmart parking lot, not allowing anyone to enter.
From top: Police respond to an armed confrontation at the Brewer Walmart on Friday, Aug. 27; Bystanders watch from Thompson Street as police respond to an armed confrontation at the Brewer Walmart on Friday, Aug. 27. Credit: Linda Coan O’Kresik | BDN
Allan Saunders said he was in the parking lot, waiting for his mother-in-law and wife who were shopping in the store, when an officer asked him to leave.
April Jones of LaGrange had dropped her car off at the Walmart garage to get it fixed around 4 p.m. She was shopping at the nearby Urban Garden Center when she heard about an incident at Walmart.
She tried to return to get her car keys, but officers told her she couldn’t.
At least a dozen police vehicles from multiple agencies are at the scene, along with an ambulance on standby. A crisis negotiation team was also called to the standoff.