Four men rob Florida Walmart at gunpoint

Occurred March 6, 2013.

Four men entered a Walmart in Royal Palm Beach, Florida, then fled.

From an article:

Authorities want the public’s help in identifying and locating suspects in the armed robbery of a Royal Palm Beach Walmart. 

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, the robbery happened 12:30 a.m. Wednesday at the store, which is located at 9990 Belvedere Road. 

The sheriff’s office released still photos of three suspects, plus a sketch of one of them and a picture of the gold minivan in which they fled.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Man armed with gun steals TV from a California Walmart; caught by police after dramatic chase

Occurred March 9, 2013.

A man walked into a Walmart in American Canyon, California, armed with a gun, and walked out fled with a stolen TV.  

Police chased the man in his pickup, and the chase ended with after the man crashed into a patrol car, then was hit by another patrol car.  After tasering the suspect, he was arrested and taken into custody.

From an article:

Police got a call around 4:30 a.m. from security officers at the Walmart at 7011 Main St. reporting that a man stole a TV and said he had a gun when confronted. 

The man jumped into a car and drove onto state Highway 29, where officers spotted him a short time later. 

When officers attempted to stop the car, the suspect sped away and drove into a mobile home park on American Canyon Road, police said. 

The chase ended with the suspect crashing into one of the police patrol cars following him. 

Officers quickly apprehended the suspect, identified as 64-year-old Robert Craig of Vallejo. He was arrested on suspicion of robbery, evading police and resisting arrest.
Before being taken to jail, Craig was transported to Queen of the Valley Medical Center in Napa County and treated for minor injuries, police said. 

No other injuries were reported.

(A related news video)

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Man threatened by meth druggie wielding realistic-looking BB gun at Arizona Sam's Club

Occurred March 8, 2013.

A man in a Flagstaff, Arizona, Sam's Club parking lot was held at gunpoint by another man who was apparently high on meth.  The victim was able to convince the gunman to put away the gun and leave peaceably.

The gun was later determined to be a realistic-looking BB gun.

From an article:

A 22-year-old man told police he didn't know it was a BB gun when a man pulled a gun on him in the Sam's Club parking lot last week. According to a police report, the suspect was riding his skateboard when he jumped off, produced a gun and said "I hate to do this to you, but meth makes you do crazy things." The victim told police he debated trying to grab the gun away, believing the man was going to kill him. The suspect appeared to be high on meth and was constantly fidgeting, he said. The man pointed the gun at the victim's chest, as well as his own chest, but never demanded anything. Eventually, the suspect gave him the gun, he told police. The victim put the gun in his waistband and talked to the man about "life" for about 40 minutes. The victim was a former meth addict and talked to the man about Christianity, the report said. Eventually, the two hugged, said "God bless" and went their separate ways. The man later called police and gave them his description, but said he didn't want to get the suspect in any more trouble than he was already in. Police collected the gun from the man and determined it was a BB gun, but an officer said you wouldn't have known it wasn't real unless you manipulated it.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Conceal carry permit holder threatens Florida Walmart employees with gun over a denied coupon

Occurred March 4, 2013.

Mary Frances Alday, 61, was in a Walmart in Crawfordville, Florida, when her $1-off coupon was rejected.  She became angry and hit a manager with a shopping cart, and was subsequently escorted out.  But she made threats, and once at her car she pulled out a loaded Smith & Wesson .38 Special and pointed it at employees, threatening to shoot them.

Alday was then pulled over by the police, but refused to hand over her weapon, until she was tased and dragged from her car.

Alday is a legal conceal carry permit holder.

From an article:

As several Walmart employees watched from the store’s entrance, Alday appeared outside her car “waving the gun in the holster,” reported investigators. Alday then removed the weapon--a loaded Smith & Wesson .38 Special--from the holster and pointed it “at all the store employees and stated ‘I have something for Y’all.’” The Walmart workers “retreated back inside the building due to being in fear for their lives.” 

Alday, who fled the Walmart parking lot in a 2011 Ford Escape, was subsequently pulled over by a sheriff’s deputy who asked if there was a firearm in the SUV.  

“Yes, I have a concealed weapons permit, and you are not taking my gun.” Asked about the gun’s location, Alday replied, “You’re not taking my gun.” 

Alday twice refused the deputy’s request to exit the auto, and was tasered when she “reached over the console for something in the passenger seat.” Alday was then dragged from the car and handcuffed. The gun was found in the vehicle’s center console. .... 

Alday was charged with four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of battery. She was booked into the county jail, where she remains in custody in advance of an initial court appearance. 

Sheriff’s reports do not indicate the Walmart item for which Alday was seeking to save a dollar.

(the Wakulla County Sheriff's department report)

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Armed prescription drug robbers at Pennsylvania Walmart plead guilty

Armed robbery occurred August 6, 2012.


Last August, a couple robbed a Walmart pharmacy at gunpoint, in Lower Nazareth Township, Pennsylvania. 

Wanting prescription pain medicines, Gregory and Lindsey Dalrymple, planned the heist together.  She armed herself with a 9mm handgun, and he with an unloaded realistic-looking pellet gun.  She drove the getaway car while he stole prescription patches.

They have now pleaded guilty to the crime.

From an article:

Gregory and Lindsey Dalrymple pleaded guilty to one count of robbery this morning before Northampton County Judge Edward Smith. Authorities say that after being unable to purchase the painkilling Fentanyl patches, the two conspired to steal between 15 and 20 from the in-store pharmacy at the store's Route 248 location. 

Gregory Dalrymple told Smith he had become dependent on the drug following his spinal fusion surgery, but could no longer acquire the drug legally. His wife had been abusing the medication as well, he said, so she purchased a 9 mm handgun Aug. 4, drove him Aug. 6 to the Wal-Mart and scouted out the inside so he could rob it. 

"I wasn't going to do it if there were women and children in there. I wasn't going to do it," he said, adding that he apologized to the pharmacist as he leveled the unloaded gun at him.
After the pharmacist stuffed the pain medications into a bag, Gregory Dalrymple said he quickly got out of the pharmacy and was thanked by a Wal-Mart greeter as he left. He then jumped into the waiting car, and Lindsey Dalrymple sped off to their South Easton home, he said. The two ate the patches as they raced home, he said. 

Police received a tip that Gregory Dalrymple was the gunman and on Aug. 9 raided an apartment on the first block of North 11th Street, but he was not there. He surrendered Aug. 22 and testified against his wife at her preliminary hearing. 

After Gregory Dalrymple pleaded guilty to one count of robbery, Lindsey Dalrymple acknowledged most of the same facts, but said she did not actively conspire with her husband. She had applied for the 9 mm handgun weeks before and said her husband brandished a pellet gun in the robbery. While Gregory Dalrymple had not threatened her the day of the robbery, he had become physical in the past when she defied him, she said. 

"You're either going to get your ass beat, or you're going to do what you're told," she said, adding the he had tried to have her shanked in prison. Assistant District Attorney Patricia Fuentes Mulqueen said the allegations weren't true.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Two teen boys rob man at gunpoint in Florida Walmart parking lot

Occurred February 27, 2013.

Two boys, ages 15 and 16, robbed a man at gunpoint in the parking lot of a Walmart in Orlando, Florida.

From an article:

According to police, the 15- and 16-year-old boys held their victim up at gunpoint in the parking lot of the Walmart on the 2500 block of South Kirkman Road at about 10 p.m. Wednesday. 

One boy held the handgun to the victim's back as the other took his property before running off, police say. Officers caught the boys minutes later with the victim's property and the gun. 

Both were arrested. The 15-year-old boy face charges of robbery with a firearm and possession of a firearm. The 16-year-old also faces robbery charges. 

The 26-year-old victim was not injured during the robbery.

The article did not say how the boys got hold of a loaded handgun.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Walmart bans all knives in bakeries, but still sells guns despite weekly shootings?

Recently, a man bought an Elmo birthday cake for his son's second birthday from a Walmart in Lewiston, Maine.  When they cut into the cake, they discovered that the cake had been baked with a small metal paring knife inside of it!

Naturally, the man and his family were horrified that such a mistake could be made, and immediately reported the issue to the Walmart store that had made it.

Walmart's reaction:  immediately ban the use of knives in all of its bakeries, nationwide!  

From an article (bolding added):

Nathan Bibeau says as the family was slicing into the Elmo birthday cake bought at the Auburn Walmart someone spotted a small metal paring knife. 

Bibeau tells WGME-TV he was "pretty disappointed," and called Walmart immediately. 

Walmart apologized and offered a refund. A corporate spokeswoman said the knife incident "should not have happened," and the retailer was eliminating use of the knives at store bakeries nationwide.

How do you run a bakery without knives?  While I'm glad Walmart is concerned and has taken (over-reactive) steps to address the issue, I'm perplexed.

As I have chronicled here at Walmart Shootings, Walmart averaged more than one shooting a week in 2012, and that doesn't even account for gun crimes (stolen guns, armed robberies, etc) which did not involve shots fired.  In just the first two months of 2013, there have been 11 shootings -- more than one a week (here's a running list).

So Walmart will ban all knives in their bakeries after a single, non-injury incident, but will gladly continue selling guns and ammo, including five different assault rifles, despite weekly carnage on their properties?

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.