RAYMORE, Mo. – A car chase and a man with a gun interrupted business for one of the largest retailers in Raymore Saturday.
Belton police got a call around 9:30 a.m. that someone had a gun near a car there, while at the same time, Raymore police got a call reporting the same car was at Walmart off 171st and Dean Avenue.
Investigators say someone from the vehicle had run inside the store. It took several hours for partnering law enforcement agencies to comb through the store, looking for a man with a gun. There was some speculation that a car was stolen and possible shots were fired in Belton but the City of Raymore wouldn’t confirm those details.
City spokeswoman Meredith Hauck said, “We don’t know all of those details yet. All we know is that the car was originally located in Belton and then came to Walmart and that’s where a person was dropped off and went inside the building.”
Law enforcement did not find the person they were looking for inside the store.
“The individual was not located. He likely left when the store was evacuated,” said Hauck.
Duke Hull dropped his car off to get his oil changed.
He said, “We dropped everything, put our items back and our car is still over there right now, at the oil place. I saw employees running, ducking behind cars, pushing items, cars going this way, people going every way. A little bit of chaos.”
Management quickly evacuated everyone. Customers left items behind, and employees stuck it out in the parking lot.
“They did their job well. They handled it well. They evacuated everybody quick, everybody back far away from the place. They did their job real good,” said Hull.
Hauck explained why the process requires patience.
“It does take time to get officers in here, a tactical team deployed and go section by section to clear it before customers are let back inside. We wish we would’ve been able to find him in the store but the investigation will continue,” she said.
No one was hurt in this exchange, from Belton to Raymore. The city didn’t provide a vehicle or a suspect description. They said no shots were fired in Raymore, but potentially some in Belton, though they didn’t elaborate. They did not find a gun inside Walmart. The store reopened at about 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Earlier coverage: