Man threatened to shoot during ‘Last Jedi’
A man threatened to shoot people during a “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” matinee at a Las Vegas Town Square movie theater Dec. 15, according to police documents.
A Metropolitan Police Department arrest report indicates Gary Williams, 37, threatened to shoot several people inside AMC Town Square 18, 6587 Las Vegas Blvd. South.
Prosecutors last week charged Williams with one count of making a terroristic threat. Williams remained in Clark County Detention Center as of Wednesday. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 3.
The incident unfolded about
3:45 p.m. Dec. 15 when people called Metro to report the threats inside of theater 5, the report said. One of the callers, a building security guard, said many customers told her of the threats. She found Williams inside and made eye contact with him.
“If you keep looking at me I will shoot you in the face,” Williams told a security guard, according to the report.
A moviegoer said a man in the row behind her, who was later identified as Williams, talked to himself and loudly cussed while she was watching “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” in 3-D, the report said.
“When (the woman) asked him to be quiet he became verbally aggressive and wanted to fight her,” according to the report.
Another woman added Williams threatened people with a gun, the report said.
A theater manager watched moviegoers run out of the theater saying a man was threatening to shoot everyone, the arrest report said.
The manager had an employee stop the film and turn up the lights, and security watched Williams exit the theater.
“As he left the Auditorium he continued to threaten people in the hall with graphic sexual threats and challenged patrons to a fight,” the arrest report said.
AMC security followed Williams as he walked out of the building, the report said. Town Square security found him walking through the area. Officers took Williams into custody.
After Williams left the property, management resumed the last 30 minutes or so of the movie.
No gun was found, police said. Williams initially was thought to be holding a stick but was, in fact, holding an umbrella wrapped in a blanket, the report said.
AMC Theatres spokesman Ryan Noonan responded via email to a Dec. 17 Las Vegas Review-journal inquiry.
“In response to a security disturbance that caused the disruption of a movie, the theatre team followed proper security protocols, evacuating the auditorium and contacting the police, and the situation was resolved without further incident,” he said in the email. “The show was restarted and impacted guests were provided passes.”
The response further noted, “To our knowledge, there was no weapon involved.”
Contact Mike Shoro at mshoro@ reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290. Follow @mike_shoro on Twitter.