Bodycam: Suspect Swings Machete at Fla. Police in Clash at Walmart

Florida police apprehended a man who is accused of waving a machete at Walmart customers before swinging the bladed weapon at officers over the weekend.

The incident happened at about 9 p.m. Saturday when Fort Pierce police received multiple reports of a man waving a machete as he walked through a Walmart, according to a department news release. Body camera footage from the agency shows customers rushing past officers as they arrived at the scene.

Once inside the store, a bystander pointed out the suspect, who was leaving with the crowd and had put his machete in a shopping cart. When officers confronted the man—identified as Lawrence Fountain, 33— he allegedly grabbed the machete and swung it at officers.

“There were people running out, moving away,” Maj. Mike Santiago told WPBF-TV. “There were even some people that were in the store, not understanding what was going on at the time. So, it was somewhat chaotic.”

Police deployed a Taser and subdued Fountain. One officer suffered a cut during the struggle and was treated at a hospital.

Fountain is charged with aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer and additional offenses. He was booked into jail following medical treatment.

“This could have gone a number of different ways,” said . “It ended up where it was minor injuries, and we took somebody off the streets that was potentially a threat to everybody else in that area.”

This article was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence.