4 shot inside Clayton County Walmart after man mishandles gun, police say

It’s business as usual Sunday night at the Walmart in Lovejoy, but hours before, yellow tape greeted customers. It’s a reminder of the shooting that happened inside the grocery department of the Walmart on Tara Boulevard around 12:20 pm Sunday afternoon.

Alfred Maass said he was on his way to Walmart when the shooting happened.

“My daughter called me. She lives up the street from me; I live over here in Jonesboro. She was afraid that I might be over here because I come over here almost every day,” said Maass.

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“One of the patrons inside of the business had mishandled the firearm, and that firearm had discharged. The firearm struck the patron in his leg, and subsequently hit three other patrons that were inside the business as well.

“The gun was in his waistband not holstered and loaded. The gun slipped down his leg, he attempted to grab it, and was somehow manipulating the weapon and discharged the firearm,” said Sgt. Akeem Turnbull with Lovejoy Police.

Turnbull said the gun belonged to 29-year old Michael Walton. The bullet struck Walton and three other customers.

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“One of the victims also got hit in the leg. The other one got hit in the back of the leg and the other one got some bruising. All of them were towards the lower portions of the bodies.”

Walmart released this statement to Channel 2:

“The safety and well-being of our customers and associates is always a top priority. We’re aware of the situation and will continue assisting law enforcement through their investigation.”

All involved sustained non-life-threatening injuries and received medical attention.

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