'Idiot': Shopper pulls gun on man in row over mask
An unmasked man has pulled a gun on a masked shopper and his young daughter during an apparent confrontation over masks at a store in the US, local authorities say.
The Florida Walmart store’s security vision released by the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office shows the unmasked man enter the store pushing an older man in a wheelchair on Saturday afternoon, local time.
When another customer wearing a mask approaches the pair, the man in the wheelchair pulls a red scarf over his mouth and the trio exchange words.
Suddenly the unmasked man gives the shopper the middle finger before pulling out a handgun from his waistband.
A young girls rushes over to the masked man and attempts to pull him away from the armed man, while another shopper tried to intervene.
Police say the unmasked man made a death threat before leaving the store.
Local police posted the incident on Facebook asking for help to identify the armed man.
“You think you're big and bad because you pull out a gun?” the post read along with images on the incident.
“Palm Beach County, we need your help to find this individual wanted for Assault with a Firearm at a local Walmart in Royal Palm Beach. He left the store in a white Chevy Equinox.”
The post attracted over 1,600 comments and was shared more than 2,000 times with police later confirming the suspect had been identified with help from the public.
“That poor little sweet girl. You can see she’s trying to tug on that mans arm to get him to leave. I can’t imagine what must have been running through her head,” one person commented.
“Another idiot with a gun,” someone else wrote.
Others were shocked that people in the state were still refusing to wear face masks despite a huge surge in cases in Florida.
“Imagine being idiotic enough not to wear a mask in Florida and then stupid enough to pull a gun out in Walmart,” one person wrote.
Several people posted the unmasked man was using his constitutional right to carry a firearm.
“Good for this man... standing up for his American rights,” one person added.
Florida has one of the highest number of coronavirus cases in the US, with new data in the state revealing this week that 31 per cent of children tested for COVID-19 in Florida have been positive.
Florida has seen more than 300,000 official cases and more than 4,535 COVID-19 deaths.
with AP
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