East County News  Service

July 3, 2023 (Santee) – A man armed with knives, a hatchet and dumbbell weights threatened to harm people including deputies inside the Walmart Store in Santee yesterday, prompting a seven-hour stand-ff with law enforcement.

The 22-year-old man entered the store on Town Center Parkway shortly after noon and climbed atop shelving in the sporting goods department.  “Store employees called the Sheriff's Department after the man armed himself with workout dumbbells and threatened to use them as weapons. The man also told employees he wanted deputies to shoot him,” says Lieutenant Christopher Galve with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.

The Walmart store was evacuated and closed down for several hours.The Sheriff's Special Enforcement Detail (SED/SWAT team) and Crisis Negotiations Team were called to assist.

“During negotiations, deputies determined the man was experiencing a mental health crisis,” Lt. Galve says. “The man refused to drop his weapons and refused to come down off the shelving. He told deputies several times to shoot him and walked toward them with the hatchet raised.”