A fast-acting, off-duty Springfield firefighter may have stopped another Walmart massacre today. The firefighter was able to stop the heavily armed, 20-year-old, white male, wearing body armor, because he was a concealed gun carrier.

Guns are the great equalizer.

Officers responded to reports of an active shooter at the Springfield, MO Walmart, which had been prompted by the man walking around the store with a shopping cart, body armor, and tactical weapon. A manager noticed the man, pulled a fire alarm to evacuate the building, and then contacted police.

An off-duty firefighter then stopped the man at an emergency exit, who held him at gunpoint until police arrived.

“His intent was not to cause peace or comfort to anybody that was in the business. In fact, he’s lucky to be alive still to be honest,” he told reporters.

Lucas said Thursday evening that no shots were fired and nobody was injured. However, the man is still in custody.

According to Lt. Lucas, an off duty fireman who was at the Walmart is to thank in some part for the young man’s arrest.

For now, investigators will review both the Walmart security footage and the armed 20-year-old’s social media profiles.

KY3.com reports – Police then say the man walked into the Walmart: Neighborhood Market where he grabbed a cart and began pushing it around the store. Police say the man was recording himself walking through the store via a cell phone.

The store manager at the Neighborhood Market pulled a fire alarm, urging people to escape the store.

Police say the man then made his way out an emergency exit where a firefighter held the man at gunpoint. At that moment Springfield Police arrived on scene and detained the man.

 

Lucas says there may have been a Facebook live posted by the man. Officers plan to watch the video and learn his intentions.

Lucas said the store’s multiple security cameras will make it easy for SPD to study his behavior.

“Walmart has hundreds of cameras,” Lucas said. “Every footstep he took here is going to chronical and document his actions.”

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